Hang in there: People’s Vote could still be the real deal

Brexit got real yesterday, possibly for the first time since Britain voted to leave the EU in June 2016.

Not real like the day after the referendum. You’ll remember: when Boris Johnson stood in the glare of the flashlights visibly fearful of the next stage of a political revolution he’d recklessly helped to fuel.

Not real, either, like Theresa May’s preposterous meaningful vote on her Withdrawal Agreement, first pulled due to stage fright before being trounced after a hamfisted attempt to run the clock down.

No, this is what Pulitzer-winning rapper Kendrick Lamar might call “really real”.

Japanese car maker Nissan’s abandonment of a move to manufacture X-Trail SUVs at its factory in Sunderland will have disastrous consequences for a city which has experienced more than its fair share of struggles in the post-industrial era.

Nissan were keeping quiet yesterday after the news, already widely predicted, broke on the BBC and Sky News. All the indicators, however, were that the broadcasters were absolutely accurate. That Sunderland voted to leave the EU by a margin of 61 per cent to 39 offers no comfort to anybody.

The fact that Leave voters will be among the worst affected is no more than a cruel curiosity in a still-unfolding national psychodrama.

The fact is that this cancel lation by the Japanese manufacturer might be the first major Brexit disaster in terms of jobs and the economy – but it is hardly likely to be the last.

So, to whom do the people of Sunderland turn?

Not to the Tory Government, which has proved barely capable of negotiating Brexit’s processes, never mind dealing with its far more serious consequences.

Not to Labour, who may have given the city the political talents of MP Chris Mullin for a generation but who have no coherent strategy on the issue.

Certainly not to the moronic Nigel Farage, last seen assuring Wearside voters that Nissan were going nowhere with the contract.

Even the campaign for a People’s Vote has lost its mojo.

After recent Commons setbacks, the mood music coming from that camp had an air of defeatism. Those involved though, mustn’t give up. There remain noble reasons for seeking a second referendum. The PM herself has tacitly admitted that the No-Deal fiasco is disastrous for jobs and the economy.

The fact that Leave voters will be among the worst hit is a cruel curiosity

They may not win the day. But it is not yet time for the People’s Vote campaign to admit defeat.