Politicians must end the Brexit bickering

Rare is the British politician that can resist the lure of a newspaper headline, a prime slot on a Sunday morning current affairs programme, or a provocative tweet that gets social media talking, if only for a few hours. For better or for worse, public attention has long been the oxygen of Westminster. Big decisions, whether radical or incremental, often get their first airings in the press, rather than in Parliament. It has become the norm for ministers to “fly kites” in carefully arranged interviews, often before deliberating and honing their ideas first. On domestic policy decisions, from education to infrastructure, this approach sometimes works. Its proponents would say it’s a form of democracy in action, vetting big ideas before committing the Whitehall bureaucracy and public money to bringing them to life.

Brexit, however, is a different story. In the 18 months since the EU referendum was fought, the 24/7 cacophony of noise and political posturing has hurt business and public confidence, our negotiating position, and even our global reputation.

Put simply, the high-visibility slanging match on Brexit is undermining our own side – and it has to stop.

Across the country, the business communities I represent speak of “Brexit fatigue” and their disappointment with Westminster. They want to see competence and coherence, not disorganisation and division, on one of the defining issues of a generation. When I speak to business leaders on the Continent, and further afield, they are incredulous at our politicians’ indiscipline and short-termism.

And while I often bristle at the hauteur and condescension in the public pronouncements of Brussels Eurocrats, they have a point when they say that a deeply divided Britain is often still negotiating with itself, rather than with the EU.

As a new year dawns, it is time for Her Majesty’s Government to get to grips with the big questions around Brexit – and to remember that it is engaged in a high-stakes process that will determine our political and economic course for years, not a personal popularity contest. The same goes for Her Majesty’s Loyal Opposition, which has a similar duty to do what is right for the country, rather than for its own electoral ambitions. In 2018, our leaders face major decisions, including Britain’s relative proximity or distance to the European single market, how open we will be to international talent and skills, and how we will minimise friction in trade across borders in an ever more globalised world.

These are decisions that require a thorough command of detail, deep and discreet consultations on potential impacts, and a careful and reasoned assessment of the costs and benefits of each approach. They are decisions that will have a major impact on the future path of the UK economy, when it is outside of the European Union. Fuzzy vision statements and boilerplate rhetoric from 38,000 feet are simply not good enough.

Businesses need clarity on the practicalities. They want a solid transition, inked quickly, to give short-term stability. Clarity will underpin confidence and investment – whereas more unspecific political noise will do precisely the opposite.

Ultimately, leadership is about the decisions one takes – rather than the noise one makes.

Making a success of the Brexit process requires better decisions, and less noise, in 2018. It requires politicians to take a considered approach to issues, and avoid taking their disagreements into the public sphere. So to our representatives and leaders in Westminster: please resolve to lower the volume on Brexit in the new year, and get stuck in to the detail. Ask more thoughtful questions of all those, including business, with a stake in this process.

The livelihoods of the voting public, the economic health of the places you represent, and the success of your local business communities depends on it. After all, they are the reason you’re there in the first place – aren’t they?

Dr Adam Marshall is director general of the British Chambers of Commerce

‘A deeply divided Britain is negotiating with itself, rather than with the EU’