Voting for Brexit would be the greatest act of anti-establishment rebellion ever

Let’s give Westminster the long-overdue two-fingered salute


The EU referendum: unlike Eurovision, the NUS, or the general election, it’s actually quite important.

We’ve heard it time and time again, the Brexit side of the debate has not yet convincingly put forward a prosperous alternative to the EU. The future of an independent Britain looks uncertain; it’s a leap of faith, it’s perhaps even reckless. That much is true, there’s no doubt about that.

However, what we don’t hear is that the same is true of a vote to remain. If we vote to stay in the European Union, it won’t be business as usual. We’ll be shackled to a political union that’s future is as uncertain as that of an independent Britain.

Brexit is a gamble, but you must realise the EU is in fast decline. It’s being overtaken by the rest of the world. It’s falling apart at the seams. The Eurozone’s a nightmare, the south is destitute, and division cuts through its nations. Remaining in the EU does not mean smooth sailing for Britain. That much is assured. But I’m not here to argue about the benefits of leaving the EU or the disadvantages to remaining. I don’t have the information, nor the crystal ball to convince you of either side. Instead, I want to come at this from a different angle.

The EU referendum is the fight student activists up and down the country have been longing for, they just don’t realise it yet. Student activism used to mean something. It used to be hopeful and optimistic. Today it’s a shadow of its former self; more interested in seeking out boogeymen than actually looking to the future.

The student support for Remain is just symptomatic of the sad, slow death of university activism – a sick animal that should be put down. Campaigning for Brexit would blow a breath of life back into its husk. Forget Russell Brand, forget about your weird Guy Fawkes mask fetish, voting leave is the real way to hit the establishment where it hurts.

Voting to leave is our chance to spit in the face of the establishment and by establishment I don’t mean monocle-wearing Tories; I mean anyone of any political stripe who has for too long sneered, scoffed at, ignored and condescended to vast swathes of the population.

I mean the likes of David Cameron, Emily Thornberry, Nick Clegg and Polly Toynbee and a wave of other equally vacuous and almost identical politicians, hacks and celebrities – the so called ‘intelligentsia’. These are the people who represent many things that are wrong with our society. It’s not party politics, it’s not class war, it’s a lofty disdain for the country and its inhabitants. They ignore the fact they are there as servants, they have a duty not to use and exploit their positions, yet they do it time and time again.

It may seem distant, but I assure you, the EU is just as much a part of this as anyone else. The establishment is fighting tooth and nail to keep us in because it is just another part of the gravy train. 23 June is our chance to finally tell them where to get off, so let’s go give Westminster the long-overdue two-fingered salute.