Fixing Brexit: How the UK’s parliamentary system can solve our political crisis

Barristers Jonathan Cooper and Felicity Williams reflect on how Britain’s withdrawal from the EU has tested the endurance of Westminster

Will parliament be broken by Brexit, or can it provide the cure? (AFP/Getty)

As the Brexit drama approaches an apparent climax, it is clear that the last two and a half years have pushed the UK’s system of government to its limits. The poorly thought through referendum process has challenged the Westminster system of deliberative and representative democracy.

The fact that the UK embarked upon EU withdrawal before there was a real plan for what that might mean, highlights the Achilles’ heel of the rumbustious UK constitution. Yet that framework also provides a means to solve the crisis.

The primary villains of the Brexit piece are those who introduced the European Union Referendum Act 2015 and those who were responsible for the conduct of the referendum. A thoughtful consultation process should have taken place to anticipate and mitigate potential problems, whatever the outcome.