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1. Shard Calculation

Query:

Response:

Calculated Shard: 6 (from laksa119)

2. Crawled Status Check

Query:

curl -X POST \
  'http://laksa006.int.ahrefs:8124/' \
  -H 'Content-Type: text/plain' \
  -H 'X-ClickHouse-Database: crawler3' \
  -H 'Authorization: Basic YXBpOg==' \
  -d 'SELECT getAhrefsURLFromUnparsed(src_unparsed) AS found_url, ifNull(toUnixTimestamp(download_stamp), 0) AS crawl_time, ifNull(toUnixTimestamp(props_url_first_seen), 0) AS first_indexed_time, download_http_code AS http_code, src_unparsed AS src_unparsed, src_root_hash AS src_root_hash, history_drop_reason AS history_drop_reason, meta_title AS meta_title, meta_descriptions AS meta_descriptions, attrs_boilerpipe_text AS attrs_boilerpipe_text, attrs_markdown AS attrs_markdown, attrs_readable_markdown AS attrs_readable_markdown, meta_canonical AS meta_canonical FROM crawler3.page_info_local FINAL PREWHERE (src_root_hash, src_unparsed) IN ((getAhrefsRootHashFromUnparsed(getAhrefsUnparsedNoserviceFromURL(\'https://spectator.com/article/this-is-how-brexit-dies/\')), getAhrefsUnparsedNoserviceFromURL(\'https://spectator.com/article/this-is-how-brexit-dies/\'))) FORMAT JSONEachRow'

Response:

{"found_url":"https:\/\/spectator.com\/article\/this-is-how-brexit-dies\/","crawl_time":1775130516,"first_indexed_time":1773826890,"http_code":200,"src_unparsed":"com,spectator!\/article\/this-is-how-brexit-dies\/ s443","src_root_hash":"2120028157800254406","history_drop_reason":null,"meta_title":"This is how Brexit dies | The Spectator","meta_descriptions":["This is the way that Brexit ends: not with a bang but with a whimpering submission to EU standards on everything, billions in contributions to the EU purse – but with the pretence that we are not really rejoining the single market or customs union, honest. That was the position laid out by the Chancellor"],"attrs_boilerpipe_text":"Comments\nThis is the way that Brexit ends: not with a bang but with a whimpering submission to EU standards on everything, billions in contributions to the EU purse – but with the pretence that we are not really rejoining the single market or customs union, honest. That was the position laid out by the Chancellor in her Mais lecture on Tuesday. She said the government would pursue a bespoke deal with the EU where divergence would be the ‘exception, not the rule’. What does that mean in practice? The EU has made it perfectly clear that it is not going to accept an\nà\nla carte\nmenu on the single market; if you want to be in the club you are going to have to accept all its rules and pay all its dues. That will mean free movement, and accepting all social directives; although the current government seems determined to outdo the EU on employment rights anyway, so maybe that won’t mean much.\n The government’s position on Brexit is now illogical. Reeves describes leaving the EU as a ‘chaotic wrong turn’, and yet maintains there will be no going back to the single market and customs union. Why not, if you think it was a chaotic wrong turn to leave them? I say it is illogical but it does make some kind of sense. Reeves’s approach is exactly what you do if you want to reverse Brexit without the bother, or risk, of having to seek the approval of the British people. Even so, full membership is where we would no doubt end up, once it could be sold as a mere tidying up exercise which restores our freedom to travel to the EU without a £20 visa waiver but has little other practical implications because we are tied to EU rules anyway. \nThere are a few other things in Reeves’s speech which cannot be left unchallenged. She quoted yet another fantasy figure claiming that Brexit had cost Britain 8 per cent of GDP. Given that Britain has mirrored France in GDP growth since Brexit and has outgrown Germany, this seems unlikely. It establishes a counterfactual that Britain would have boomed without Brexit. Reeves also repeated the age old fib that ‘austerity’ damaged growth in the 2010s because it robbed the economy of investment . To believe this you have to believe that only the public sector is capable of providing economy-growing investment, when public investment has a poor record. Had the coalition not cut spending it would have required higher borrowing or sharp tax rises. The latter would have killed off investment far more, while the former would have added dangerously to government borrowing costs – right in the midst of a sovereign debt crisis which was consuming Greece, Spain and other European countries. \nReeves is beginning to look really quite desperate in her efforts to palm off Britain’s lousy economic performance on anyone except herself. The answer to why the economy is flatlining now lies not with Brexit but with employers’ National Insurance, which has killed off job creation, and the Employment Rights Act (ditto). To put that right we don’t need to rejoin the EU; we need a more competent occupant of Number 11.","attrs_markdown":"[Skip to main content](https:\/\/spectator.com\/article\/this-is-how-brexit-dies\/#js-site-content)\n\nUS EDITION\n\nUK EDITION\n\nUS EDITION\n\n[Sign In](\"Sign In\")\n\n- [Home](https:\/\/spectator.com\/?edition=us)\n- [Writers](https:\/\/spectator.com\/writers\/?edition=us)\n- [Newsletters](https:\/\/spectator.com\/emails\/?edition=us)\n- [Podcasts](https:\/\/spectator.com\/podcasts\/?edition=us)\n- [Briefings](https:\/\/spectator.com\/spectator-briefing\/?edition=us)\n- [Events](https:\/\/events.spectator.co.uk\/)\n- [Club](https:\/\/club.spectator.co.uk\/)\n- [Archive](https:\/\/archive.spectator.co.uk\/)\n- [Shop](https:\/\/shop.spectator.co.uk\/)\n\n- - [Politics](https:\/\/spectator.com\/category\/politics\/?edition=us)\n  - [Cockburn](https:\/\/spectator.com\/writer\/cockburn\/?edition=us)\n  - [Culture](https:\/\/spectator.com\/the-critics\/?edition=us)\n  - [Tech](https:\/\/spectator.com\/category\/technology\/?edition=us)\n  - 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[Coffee House](https:\/\/spectator.com\/coffee-house\/?edition=us)\n\n[![Ross Clark](https:\/\/spectator.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/ross-clark-512x512-1.png?w=192) Ross Clark](https:\/\/spectator.com\/writer\/ross-clark\/?edition=us)\n\n# This is how Brexit dies\n- Wednesday, March 18, 2026, 9:28 AM\n\n![](https:\/\/spectator.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/GettyImages-2267012089.jpg?w=1024)\n\nRachel Reeves (photo: Getty)\n\n- Text settings\n  \n  Text size\n  \n  - Small\n  - Medium\n  - Large\n  \n  Line Spacing\n  \n  - Compact\n  - Normal\n  - Spacious\n- [Comments](https:\/\/spectator.com\/article\/this-is-how-brexit-dies\/#comments-container)\n- Share\n  ## Share\n  Ross Clark\n  \n  ### This is how Brexit dies\n  \n  ![](https:\/\/spectator.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/GettyImages-2267012089.jpg?w=1024)\n  \n  Copy link\n  \n  Copied\n  \n  - [Linkedin](https:\/\/www.addtoany.com\/add_to\/linkedin?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Fspectator.com%2Farticle%2Fthis-is-how-brexit-dies%2F%3Fedition%3Dus&linkname=This%20is%20how%20Brexit%20dies)\n  - [Messenger](https:\/\/www.addtoany.com\/add_to\/facebook_messenger?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Fspectator.com%2Farticle%2Fthis-is-how-brexit-dies%2F%3Fedition%3Dus&linkname=This%20is%20how%20Brexit%20dies)\n  - [Email](https:\/\/www.addtoany.com\/add_to\/email?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Fspectator.com%2Farticle%2Fthis-is-how-brexit-dies%2F%3Fedition%3Dus&linkname=This%20is%20how%20Brexit%20dies)\n\nThis is the way that Brexit ends: not with a bang but with a whimpering submission to EU standards on everything, billions in contributions to the EU purse – but with the pretence that we are not really rejoining the single market or customs union, honest. That was the position laid out by the Chancellor in her Mais lecture on Tuesday. She said the government would pursue a bespoke deal with the EU where divergence would be the ‘exception, not the rule’. What does that mean in practice? The EU has made it perfectly clear that it is not going to accept an *à* *la carte* menu on the single market; if you want to be in the club you are going to have to accept all its rules and pay all its dues. That will mean free movement, and accepting all social directives; although the current government seems determined to outdo the EU on employment rights anyway, so maybe that won’t mean much.\n\nThe government’s position on Brexit is now illogical. Reeves describes leaving the EU as a ‘chaotic wrong turn’, and yet maintains there will be no going back to the single market and customs union. Why not, if you think it was a chaotic wrong turn to leave them? I say it is illogical but it does make some kind of sense. Reeves’s approach is exactly what you do if you want to reverse Brexit without the bother, or risk, of having to seek the approval of the British people. Even so, full membership is where we would no doubt end up, once it could be sold as a mere tidying up exercise which restores our freedom to travel to the EU without a £20 visa waiver but has little other practical implications because we are tied to EU rules anyway.\n\nThere are a few other things in Reeves’s speech which cannot be left unchallenged. She quoted yet another fantasy figure claiming that Brexit had cost Britain 8 per cent of GDP. Given that Britain has mirrored France in GDP growth since Brexit and has outgrown Germany, this seems unlikely. It establishes a counterfactual that Britain would have boomed without Brexit. Reeves also repeated the age old fib that ‘austerity’ damaged growth in the 2010s because it robbed the economy of investment . To believe this you have to believe that only the public sector is capable of providing economy-growing investment, when public investment has a poor record. Had the coalition not cut spending it would have required higher borrowing or sharp tax rises. The latter would have killed off investment far more, while the former would have added dangerously to government borrowing costs – right in the midst of a sovereign debt crisis which was consuming Greece, Spain and other European countries.\n\nReeves is beginning to look really quite desperate in her efforts to palm off Britain’s lousy economic performance on anyone except herself. The answer to why the economy is flatlining now lies not with Brexit but with employers’ National Insurance, which has killed off job creation, and the Employment Rights Act (ditto). To put that right we don’t need to rejoin the EU; we need a more competent occupant of Number 11.\n\n![Ross Clark](https:\/\/spectator.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/ross-clark-512x512-1.png?w=176)\n\n##### Written by\n[Ross Clark](https:\/\/spectator.com\/writer\/ross-clark\/?edition=us)\n\nRoss Clark is a leader writer and columnist who has written for *The Spectator* for three decades. He writes on Substack, at [Ross on Why?](https:\/\/rossjonathanclark.substack.com\/p\/ross-on-why?utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web&triedRedirect=true)\n\nThis article originally appeared in the UK edition\n\n- [Comments](https:\/\/spectator.com\/article\/this-is-how-brexit-dies\/#comments-container)\n- Share\n  ## Share\n  Ross Clark\n  \n  ### This is how Brexit dies\n  \n  ![](https:\/\/spectator.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/GettyImages-2267012089.jpg?w=1024)\n  \n  Copy link\n  \n  Copied\n  \n  - [Linkedin](https:\/\/www.addtoany.com\/add_to\/linkedin?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Fspectator.com%2Farticle%2Fthis-is-how-brexit-dies%2F%3Fedition%3Dus&linkname=This%20is%20how%20Brexit%20dies)\n  - [Messenger](https:\/\/www.addtoany.com\/add_to\/facebook_messenger?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Fspectator.com%2Farticle%2Fthis-is-how-brexit-dies%2F%3Fedition%3Dus&linkname=This%20is%20how%20Brexit%20dies)\n  - [Email](https:\/\/www.addtoany.com\/add_to\/email?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Fspectator.com%2Farticle%2Fthis-is-how-brexit-dies%2F%3Fedition%3Dus&linkname=This%20is%20how%20Brexit%20dies)\n\nTopics in this article\n\n- [Politics](https:\/\/spectator.com\/category\/politics\/?edition=us)\n\n### Read next\nTrending\n\n[Daniel McCarthy](https:\/\/spectator.com\/writer\/daniel-mccarthy\/?edition=us)\n\n### [Are Republicans trying to lose the midterms?](https:\/\/spectator.com\/article\/are-republicans-trying-to-lose-the-midterms\/?edition=us)\n\nAre congressional Republicans absolutely determined to forfeit this November’s midterm elections? It sure looks that way. The GOP would hardly be acting any differently if…\n\n[![](https:\/\/spectator.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/GettyImages-2267255704.jpg?resize=378,213)](https:\/\/spectator.com\/article\/are-republicans-trying-to-lose-the-midterms\/?edition=us)\n\nAlso in Politics\n\n[Sam Olsen](https:\/\/spectator.com\/writer\/sam-olsen\/?edition=us&group=2cards&card=1)\n\n### [Donald Trump would regret leaving NATO](https:\/\/spectator.com\/article\/donald-trump-would-regret-leaving-nato\/?edition=us&group=2cards&card=1)\n\n[![NATO](https:\/\/spectator.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/GettyImages-2268471646.jpg?resize=200,133)](https:\/\/spectator.com\/article\/donald-trump-would-regret-leaving-nato\/?edition=us&group=2cards&card=1)\n\nAlso by Ross Clark\n\n[Ross Clark](https:\/\/spectator.com\/writer\/ross-clark\/?edition=us&group=2cards&card=2)\n\n### [Reform will regret its commitment to the pensions triple lock](https:\/\/spectator.com\/article\/reform-will-regret-its-commitment-to-the-pensions-triple-lock\/?edition=us&group=2cards&card=2)\n\n[![](https:\/\/spectator.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/GettyImages-2269208379-e1775126663464.jpg?resize=200,133)](https:\/\/spectator.com\/article\/reform-will-regret-its-commitment-to-the-pensions-triple-lock\/?edition=us&group=2cards&card=2)\n\nLatest\n\n[David Whitehouse](https:\/\/spectator.com\/writer\/david-whitehouse\/?edition=us)\n\n### [Will Artemis II fulfill our Space Age dreams?](https:\/\/spectator.com\/article\/will-artemis-ii-fulfill-our-space-age-dreams\/?edition=us)\n\n[![](https:\/\/spectator.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/GettyImages-2268851185.jpg?resize=378,252)](https:\/\/spectator.com\/article\/will-artemis-ii-fulfill-our-space-age-dreams\/?edition=us)\n\n### Most popular\n1. 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[Gage Klipper](https:\/\/spectator.com\/writer\/gage-klipper?edition=us)\n   \n   ### [My barn dog is a Chow Chow](https:\/\/spectator.com\/article\/my-barn-dog-is-a-chow-chow\/?edition=us)\n   \n   [![](https:\/\/spectator.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/GettyImages-2259070269-1.jpg?resize=378,252)](https:\/\/spectator.com\/article\/my-barn-dog-is-a-chow-chow\/?edition=us)\n\n## Comments\nPlease enable JavaScript to view the [comments](https:\/\/disqus.com\/?ref_noscript)\n\n##### Useful links\n- [Contact & FAQs](https:\/\/spectator.com\/faqs\/?edition=us)\n- [Advertise with us](https:\/\/spectator.com\/advertising\/?edition=us)\n- [Submit a story](https:\/\/spectator.com\/submit\/?edition=us)\n\n##### About Us\n- [About The Spectator](https:\/\/spectator.com\/about\/?edition=us)\n- [Privacy policy](https:\/\/spectator.com\/privacy-policy\/?edition=us)\n- [Terms and conditions](https:\/\/spectator.com\/terms\/?edition=us)\n- [Tax strategy](https:\/\/spectator.com\/tax-strategy\/?edition=us)\n- [Jobs and vacancies](https:\/\/spectator.com\/vacancies\/?edition=us)\n- [Sitemap](https:\/\/spectator.com\/sitemap\/?edition=us)\n\n##### More from The Spectator\n- [Spectator Australia](https:\/\/www.spectator.com.au\/)\n- [Apollo Magazine](https:\/\/www.apollo-magazine.com\/)\n- [The Spectator shop](https:\/\/shop.spectator.co.uk\/)\n- [Spectator archive](https:\/\/archive.spectator.co.uk\/)\n- [Spectator Events](https:\/\/events.spectator.co.uk\/)\n- [The Spectator Club](https:\/\/club.spectator.co.uk\/)\n\n##### Subscribe\n- [Subscribe today](https:\/\/spectator.com\/subscribe\/?campaigndesc=default2025&tpcc=EOBXA01Q&edition=us)\n- [Sign up to our newsletters](https:\/\/spectator.com\/emails\/?edition=us)\n\n✕\n\nCreate an account\n\nLog in\n\n![](https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/tr?id=1654356914818419&ev=PageView&noscript=1)","attrs_readable_markdown":"- [Comments](https:\/\/spectator.com\/article\/this-is-how-brexit-dies\/#comments-container)\n\nThis is the way that Brexit ends: not with a bang but with a whimpering submission to EU standards on everything, billions in contributions to the EU purse – but with the pretence that we are not really rejoining the single market or customs union, honest. That was the position laid out by the Chancellor in her Mais lecture on Tuesday. She said the government would pursue a bespoke deal with the EU where divergence would be the ‘exception, not the rule’. What does that mean in practice? The EU has made it perfectly clear that it is not going to accept an *à* *la carte* menu on the single market; if you want to be in the club you are going to have to accept all its rules and pay all its dues. That will mean free movement, and accepting all social directives; although the current government seems determined to outdo the EU on employment rights anyway, so maybe that won’t mean much.\n\nThe government’s position on Brexit is now illogical. Reeves describes leaving the EU as a ‘chaotic wrong turn’, and yet maintains there will be no going back to the single market and customs union. Why not, if you think it was a chaotic wrong turn to leave them? I say it is illogical but it does make some kind of sense. Reeves’s approach is exactly what you do if you want to reverse Brexit without the bother, or risk, of having to seek the approval of the British people. Even so, full membership is where we would no doubt end up, once it could be sold as a mere tidying up exercise which restores our freedom to travel to the EU without a £20 visa waiver but has little other practical implications because we are tied to EU rules anyway.\n\nThere are a few other things in Reeves’s speech which cannot be left unchallenged. She quoted yet another fantasy figure claiming that Brexit had cost Britain 8 per cent of GDP. Given that Britain has mirrored France in GDP growth since Brexit and has outgrown Germany, this seems unlikely. It establishes a counterfactual that Britain would have boomed without Brexit. Reeves also repeated the age old fib that ‘austerity’ damaged growth in the 2010s because it robbed the economy of investment . To believe this you have to believe that only the public sector is capable of providing economy-growing investment, when public investment has a poor record. Had the coalition not cut spending it would have required higher borrowing or sharp tax rises. The latter would have killed off investment far more, while the former would have added dangerously to government borrowing costs – right in the midst of a sovereign debt crisis which was consuming Greece, Spain and other European countries.\n\nReeves is beginning to look really quite desperate in her efforts to palm off Britain’s lousy economic performance on anyone except herself. The answer to why the economy is flatlining now lies not with Brexit but with employers’ National Insurance, which has killed off job creation, and the Employment Rights Act (ditto). To put that right we don’t need to rejoin the EU; we need a more competent occupant of Number 11.","meta_canonical":null}

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Meta Description	This is the way that Brexit ends: not with a bang but with a whimpering submission to EU standards on everything, billions in contributions to the EU purse – but with the pretence that we are not really rejoining the single market or customs union, honest. That was the position laid out by the Chancellor
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Boilerpipe Text	Comments This is the way that Brexit ends: not with a bang but with a whimpering submission to EU standards on everything, billions in contributions to the EU purse – but with the pretence that we are not really rejoining the single market or customs union, honest. That was the position laid out by the Chancellor in her Mais lecture on Tuesday. She said the government would pursue a bespoke deal with the EU where divergence would be the ‘exception, not the rule’. What does that mean in practice? The EU has made it perfectly clear that it is not going to accept an à la carte menu on the single market; if you want to be in the club you are going to have to accept all its rules and pay all its dues. That will mean free movement, and accepting all social directives; although the current government seems determined to outdo the EU on employment rights anyway, so maybe that won’t mean much. The government’s position on Brexit is now illogical. Reeves describes leaving the EU as a ‘chaotic wrong turn’, and yet maintains there will be no going back to the single market and customs union. Why not, if you think it was a chaotic wrong turn to leave them? I say it is illogical but it does make some kind of sense. Reeves’s approach is exactly what you do if you want to reverse Brexit without the bother, or risk, of having to seek the approval of the British people. Even so, full membership is where we would no doubt end up, once it could be sold as a mere tidying up exercise which restores our freedom to travel to the EU without a £20 visa waiver but has little other practical implications because we are tied to EU rules anyway. There are a few other things in Reeves’s speech which cannot be left unchallenged. She quoted yet another fantasy figure claiming that Brexit had cost Britain 8 per cent of GDP. Given that Britain has mirrored France in GDP growth since Brexit and has outgrown Germany, this seems unlikely. It establishes a counterfactual that Britain would have boomed without Brexit. Reeves also repeated the age old fib that ‘austerity’ damaged growth in the 2010s because it robbed the economy of investment . To believe this you have to believe that only the public sector is capable of providing economy-growing investment, when public investment has a poor record. Had the coalition not cut spending it would have required higher borrowing or sharp tax rises. The latter would have killed off investment far more, while the former would have added dangerously to government borrowing costs – right in the midst of a sovereign debt crisis which was consuming Greece, Spain and other European countries. Reeves is beginning to look really quite desperate in her efforts to palm off Britain’s lousy economic performance on anyone except herself. The answer to why the economy is flatlining now lies not with Brexit but with employers’ National Insurance, which has killed off job creation, and the Employment Rights Act (ditto). To put that right we don’t need to rejoin the EU; we need a more competent occupant of Number 11.
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[Coffee House](https://spectator.com/coffee-house/?edition=us) [![Ross Clark](https://spectator.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/ross-clark-512x512-1.png?w=192) Ross Clark](https://spectator.com/writer/ross-clark/?edition=us) # This is how Brexit dies - Wednesday, March 18, 2026, 9:28 AM ![](https://spectator.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/GettyImages-2267012089.jpg?w=1024) Rachel Reeves (photo: Getty) - Text settings Text size - Small - Medium - Large Line Spacing - Compact - Normal - Spacious - [Comments](https://spectator.com/article/this-is-how-brexit-dies/#comments-container) - Share ## Share Ross Clark ### This is how Brexit dies ![](https://spectator.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/GettyImages-2267012089.jpg?w=1024) Copy link Copied - [Linkedin](https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/linkedin?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Fspectator.com%2Farticle%2Fthis-is-how-brexit-dies%2F%3Fedition%3Dus&linkname=This%20is%20how%20Brexit%20dies) - [Messenger](https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/facebook_messenger?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Fspectator.com%2Farticle%2Fthis-is-how-brexit-dies%2F%3Fedition%3Dus&linkname=This%20is%20how%20Brexit%20dies) - [Email](https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/email?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Fspectator.com%2Farticle%2Fthis-is-how-brexit-dies%2F%3Fedition%3Dus&linkname=This%20is%20how%20Brexit%20dies) This is the way that Brexit ends: not with a bang but with a whimpering submission to EU standards on everything, billions in contributions to the EU purse – but with the pretence that we are not really rejoining the single market or customs union, honest. That was the position laid out by the Chancellor in her Mais lecture on Tuesday. She said the government would pursue a bespoke deal with the EU where divergence would be the ‘exception, not the rule’. What does that mean in practice? The EU has made it perfectly clear that it is not going to accept an à la carte menu on the single market; if you want to be in the club you are going to have to accept all its rules and pay all its dues. That will mean free movement, and accepting all social directives; although the current government seems determined to outdo the EU on employment rights anyway, so maybe that won’t mean much. The government’s position on Brexit is now illogical. Reeves describes leaving the EU as a ‘chaotic wrong turn’, and yet maintains there will be no going back to the single market and customs union. Why not, if you think it was a chaotic wrong turn to leave them? I say it is illogical but it does make some kind of sense. Reeves’s approach is exactly what you do if you want to reverse Brexit without the bother, or risk, of having to seek the approval of the British people. Even so, full membership is where we would no doubt end up, once it could be sold as a mere tidying up exercise which restores our freedom to travel to the EU without a £20 visa waiver but has little other practical implications because we are tied to EU rules anyway. There are a few other things in Reeves’s speech which cannot be left unchallenged. She quoted yet another fantasy figure claiming that Brexit had cost Britain 8 per cent of GDP. Given that Britain has mirrored France in GDP growth since Brexit and has outgrown Germany, this seems unlikely. It establishes a counterfactual that Britain would have boomed without Brexit. Reeves also repeated the age old fib that ‘austerity’ damaged growth in the 2010s because it robbed the economy of investment . To believe this you have to believe that only the public sector is capable of providing economy-growing investment, when public investment has a poor record. Had the coalition not cut spending it would have required higher borrowing or sharp tax rises. The latter would have killed off investment far more, while the former would have added dangerously to government borrowing costs – right in the midst of a sovereign debt crisis which was consuming Greece, Spain and other European countries. Reeves is beginning to look really quite desperate in her efforts to palm off Britain’s lousy economic performance on anyone except herself. The answer to why the economy is flatlining now lies not with Brexit but with employers’ National Insurance, which has killed off job creation, and the Employment Rights Act (ditto). To put that right we don’t need to rejoin the EU; we need a more competent occupant of Number 11. ![Ross Clark](https://spectator.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/ross-clark-512x512-1.png?w=176) ##### Written by [Ross Clark](https://spectator.com/writer/ross-clark/?edition=us) Ross Clark is a leader writer and columnist who has written for The Spectator for three decades. He writes on Substack, at [Ross on Why?](https://rossjonathanclark.substack.com/p/ross-on-why?utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web&triedRedirect=true) This article originally appeared in the UK edition - [Comments](https://spectator.com/article/this-is-how-brexit-dies/#comments-container) - Share ## Share Ross Clark ### This is how Brexit dies ![](https://spectator.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/GettyImages-2267012089.jpg?w=1024) Copy link Copied - [Linkedin](https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/linkedin?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Fspectator.com%2Farticle%2Fthis-is-how-brexit-dies%2F%3Fedition%3Dus&linkname=This%20is%20how%20Brexit%20dies) - [Messenger](https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/facebook_messenger?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Fspectator.com%2Farticle%2Fthis-is-how-brexit-dies%2F%3Fedition%3Dus&linkname=This%20is%20how%20Brexit%20dies) - [Email](https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/email?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Fspectator.com%2Farticle%2Fthis-is-how-brexit-dies%2F%3Fedition%3Dus&linkname=This%20is%20how%20Brexit%20dies) Topics in this article - [Politics](https://spectator.com/category/politics/?edition=us) ### Read next Trending [Daniel McCarthy](https://spectator.com/writer/daniel-mccarthy/?edition=us) ### [Are Republicans trying to lose the midterms?](https://spectator.com/article/are-republicans-trying-to-lose-the-midterms/?edition=us) Are congressional Republicans absolutely determined to forfeit this November’s midterm elections? 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Readable Markdown	- [Comments](https://spectator.com/article/this-is-how-brexit-dies/#comments-container) This is the way that Brexit ends: not with a bang but with a whimpering submission to EU standards on everything, billions in contributions to the EU purse – but with the pretence that we are not really rejoining the single market or customs union, honest. That was the position laid out by the Chancellor in her Mais lecture on Tuesday. She said the government would pursue a bespoke deal with the EU where divergence would be the ‘exception, not the rule’. What does that mean in practice? The EU has made it perfectly clear that it is not going to accept an à la carte menu on the single market; if you want to be in the club you are going to have to accept all its rules and pay all its dues. That will mean free movement, and accepting all social directives; although the current government seems determined to outdo the EU on employment rights anyway, so maybe that won’t mean much. The government’s position on Brexit is now illogical. Reeves describes leaving the EU as a ‘chaotic wrong turn’, and yet maintains there will be no going back to the single market and customs union. Why not, if you think it was a chaotic wrong turn to leave them? I say it is illogical but it does make some kind of sense. Reeves’s approach is exactly what you do if you want to reverse Brexit without the bother, or risk, of having to seek the approval of the British people. Even so, full membership is where we would no doubt end up, once it could be sold as a mere tidying up exercise which restores our freedom to travel to the EU without a £20 visa waiver but has little other practical implications because we are tied to EU rules anyway. There are a few other things in Reeves’s speech which cannot be left unchallenged. She quoted yet another fantasy figure claiming that Brexit had cost Britain 8 per cent of GDP. Given that Britain has mirrored France in GDP growth since Brexit and has outgrown Germany, this seems unlikely. It establishes a counterfactual that Britain would have boomed without Brexit. Reeves also repeated the age old fib that ‘austerity’ damaged growth in the 2010s because it robbed the economy of investment . To believe this you have to believe that only the public sector is capable of providing economy-growing investment, when public investment has a poor record. Had the coalition not cut spending it would have required higher borrowing or sharp tax rises. The latter would have killed off investment far more, while the former would have added dangerously to government borrowing costs – right in the midst of a sovereign debt crisis which was consuming Greece, Spain and other European countries. Reeves is beginning to look really quite desperate in her efforts to palm off Britain’s lousy economic performance on anyone except herself. The answer to why the economy is flatlining now lies not with Brexit but with employers’ National Insurance, which has killed off job creation, and the Employment Rights Act (ditto). To put that right we don’t need to rejoin the EU; we need a more competent occupant of Number 11.
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