Is now the time to focus on Rejoin?

EU Council staff members remove the United Kingdom's flag from the European Council building in Brussels - Credit: POOL/AFP via Getty Images

Readers are split on whether The New European should focus on rejoining the EU, or whether more time is needed.

Congratulations on getting the backers and arrangements in place to enable TNE to continue and move on. What I would like to see is more coverage on how we can get to the point where there is a good level of consensus in the country that it makes sense to rejoin the EU? I think there is a path to rejoining through a combination of aligning ourselves much more closely with Europe, relentlessly setting out the benefits of membership, getting the opposition parties to work together, addressing the voting system and the centralisation of power in Westminster and setting out how the UK should be playing a leading role in Europe rather than standing in non-splendid isolation.
Phil Green

I wish TNE well in its new incarnation and will continue to subscribe. May I say that I would not welcome the paper adopting an immediate ‘Rejoin’ stance, since it is much too early to guess at what we would be rejoining. I do not expect this to succeed for many years and would probably not vote for it if asked. I believe incremental rapprochement would appeal to more voters, so following TNE’s very thorough and illuminating ‘What did we do wrong?’ strand, can we have an equally focused series on ‘What we should we do next’?
Nigel Britton

“The passage of time has eroded the power of well worn arguments about the iniquities of the vote”, writes Matt Kelly, so as a new chapter dawns for the newspaper “we’ve all got to move forward now, with an eye to the future and not the past.”

This sounds uncomfortably close to “you lost, get over it”. As Ramon Prasad observes in his letter in the same issue, it is a dominant theme these days as newspapers and political parties, exhausted or brainwashed, shrink from taking up the battle again.

A short step on from that position are entreaties to get behind Brexit, and make a success of it. Or at least to let bygones be bygones, put the Brexit referendum behind us, forget it and don’t be a Remoaner.

It is not so simple as that. There are some events whose effects reverberate down the years until they are properly atoned for. The tactics of Vote Leave fall into his category.

I hope this publication will continue to acknowledge the real anger felt by the many Britons and EU citizens whose lives have been traumatised and in some cases ruined by Brexit.
John King
Stratford-upon-Avon

Congratulations on the “new chapter” in the TNE story. I am particularly pleased to see a dedicated football column – something I’ve longed for. Rob Hughes is an excellent appointment.

Elsewhere he has argued that the 1978 World Cup – a showpiece tournament for its junta – inadvertently and ultimately led to the liberation of Argentina. I’d be very interested to know if he sees parallels with contemporary Russia?
Will Goble
Rayleigh

I’m delighted to hear that there’s sufficient confidence in the paper that it has new owners. It’s interesting to see that you now have a dedicated football correspondent but I sincerely hope that in future issues you aren’t going to follow his page with a further four pages on football. I’m sure I can’t be the only subscriber who feels that one page on the matter is quite enough.
Paul Foss
Bristol

I have read TNE virtually every week since it started. At the time of the referendum I was torn between the pros and cons of EU membership. I guess my mind was torn 52/48 %. But I, reluctantly, voted Brexit. If you asked me today, I would vote Brexit without hesitation.

You ask how to improve TNE. For a start, please stop conflating love of Europe with the love of the European federalist union, protectionist European bloc. Believe it or not, you can love Europe without loving the EU. For a start you might start publishing some letters that actually criticise the EU.
Tony Potter

I have been a subscriber since the very early days. Why? Because your paper is always the best read of the week. On current affairs you and your writers offer valuable insight and perspective (and indeed balance) while your cultural pieces take me places I would not normally go. TNE has without doubt helped get me through what has been a sadly depressing time. So more of the same please!

Andrew Turner

As our press is now dominated by rightwing anti-European pro-Conservative newspapers, may I suggest that we use our print editions of TNE wisely.

Why not hang on to a few copies until the lockdown is lifted? They could then be left in libraries, coffee bars, cafes, doctors’ surgeries or dentists’ surgeries.

You never know who might pick up a copy, and have their horizons widened. My stash is ready and waiting.
Carol Hedges
Harpenden, Herts

• Have your say by emailing theneweuropean@archant.co.uk. Our deadline for letters is Tuesday at 9am for inclusion in Thursday’s edition. Please be concise – letters over five paragraphs long may be edited before printing.