The inside story of how Britain ended up with Brexit

Thomas Raines looks at two accounts of how Cameron lost the referendum

The World Today Updated 26 November 2020 3 minute READ

Thomas Raines

Former Director, Europe Programme

Unleashing Demons: The Inside Story of Brexit
Craig Oliver, Hodder & Stoughton, £20.00

All Out War: The Full Story of How Brexit Sank Britain’s Political Class
Tim Shipman, William Collins, £25.00

Counterfactuals are often seductive. Reading the first book-length accounts of the EU referendum campaign, it is tempting to ask a series of what ifs. Did Cameron need to call a referendum at all? Could he have won an emergency brake on EU migration if he had asked for one? What if Boris had campaigned for Remain? Just when was the die cast?

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