Britain after Brexit

The country remains bitterly divided, but there is cause for hope

Houses of Parliament
(Image credit: Hollie Adams/Getty Images)

Today, at midnight Brussels time — or 11 p.m. in London — there will be a party in Parliament square to mark the moment the U.K. leaves the European Union. There will be flag-waving and much mutual back-slapping. More than three tumultuous years have passed since the country voted to leave the EU, and finally, Brexit is here. Britain is "Taking Back Control."

At first, nothing practical will change. For the rest of 2020, a "transition period" deal is in place that means the U.K. remains part of the single market and customs union. Trade and travel remain easy and free — what a luxury — but beyond December 31 this year, uncertainty looms. Nobody knows exactly what the U.K.'s relationship with the economic superpower next door will be when this date arrives, but the two deciding Brexit votes — first the referendum, and then the general election Tory landslide late last year — offer a glimpse into what kind of Britain will emerge from the safe confines of the single market. While the country remains bitterly divided, there is cause for hope.

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William Gritten

William Gritten is a London-born, New York-based strategist and writer focusing on politics and international affairs.