No Exit

The idea that Britain will not leave the EU--regardless of the vote--has been put forward by Andrew Moravcsik (back in April 2016) and, more recently both David Allen Green and Gideon Rachman also in the FT).

The first thing to ask about these arguments--and Moravcsik's is the one I reproduce here--is whether they are meant normatively (what ought to happen), predictively (what will happen), and/or explanatorily (why or how something will happen):

Moravcsik's Argument:

The Remain camp seems likely to prevail since the opposition, business, foreign investors and most educated commentators all back the government. In referendums, more­over, undecided voters tend to favour the status quo — a tendency reinforced by uncertainty about exactly what Britain would do after Brexit. Still, critics are correct that Mr Cameron is playing with fire. Referendums are unpredictable, especially when issues such as migration and terrorism are in the mix.

This uncertainty would be more troubling if the referendum really mattered. Yet Britain looks unlikely to exit Europe even if its citizens voted to do so. Instead, the government would probably do just what EU members — Denmark, France, Ireland and the Netherlands — have always done after such votes. It would negotiate a new agreement, nearly identical to the old one, disguise it in opaque language and ratify it. The public, essentially ignorant about Europe, always goes along.

In contemplating this possibility, leading Eurosceptics have shown themselves to be the craftiest political illusionists of all. Now that Brexit appears within their grasp, they are backing away from it. What they really seek is domestic political power. If Britain votes to leave, the government will fall or, at the very least, the cabinet will be reshuffled. For Eurosceptic backbenchers, this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Yet they lack parliamentary and popular majorities to govern alone. They would have to strike a deal, which means moderating anti-European demands — all amid post-referendum economic chaos. Renegotiation inside the EU would be almost inevitable.

Excessively cynical? Hardly. Few Eurosceptics are more prominent (or ambitious) than Boris Johnson, and he has signalled his willingness to compromise. The mayor of London’s soundbites remain flamboyant: “The door of the jail [is] open, and people can see the sunlit land beyond.” But read the fine print.

When the referendum was announced, Mr Johnson said that voting to leave need not necessarily mean leaving. Britain might renegotiate a better deal inside the EU, followed by a second referendum. So voters need not worry: “If you vote to leave, all your options are good.” The prime minister has, for now, dismissed that option, but Mr Johnson’s statements continue to leave just enough wriggle room.

A flip-flop? Not at all. Mr Johnson reminds us that he supported Brexit only at the last minute, after Mr Cameron’s EU deal failed to include his proposed wording recognising “parliamentary sovereignty” — just the type of frothily symbolic concession on which future renegotiations could be based.

Finally, what if Messrs Cameron and Johnson and other politicians lose control of domestic politics, or if other EU leaders tire of Eurosceptic obstreperousness and toss the Brits out? Even in this worst-case scenario, Britain would not really leave Europe.

Eurosceptics propose that Britain negotiate with 27 frustrated European governments, under tumultuous economic conditions, simply to re-establish its current economic status outside the EU. Britain’s bargaining position in such a negotiation would be exceedingly weak because it is much more dependent on Europe for exports and investment than vice versa. The inevitable result, as the Swiss know only too well, is that Europe will dictate which regulations Britain must accept. Worse, Britain will surrender any future democratic control over their making.

The lesson is simple. Europe is real because globalisation means every day more British people rely on the EU to secure and stabilise trade, investment, travel, litigation, national security and political values. So the same politicians who lead a majority of Britons down the path to leave Europe would have to lead them back up again the next day to save their own political skins.