Brexit trivia: 75 facts and stats about the Britain leaving the EU

Brexit was voted by the majority of the British people and brought tons of changes to the EU.

Let’s find out some specifics about Brexit and the changes that it will bring upon!

1. Brexit is a mix of the words “Britain” and “exit”
2. It meas the impending withdrawal of the United Kingdom (UK) from the European Union (EU)
3. It follows the referendum of 23 June 2016
4. Brexit was voted by 51.9 per cent of the British population
5. Withdrawal has been advocated by Eurosceptics, both left-wing and right-wing
6. While Pro-Europeanists (or European Unionists), who also span the political spectrum, have advocated continued membership
7. The UK joined the European Communities (EC) in 1973 under the Conservative government of Edward Heath
8. Its membership was endorsed by a referendum in 1975
9. In the 1970s and 1980s, withdrawal from the European Communities was advocated mainly by the political left
10. With the Labour Party’s 1983 election manifesto advocating complete withdrawal
11. In the late 1980s, opposition to the development of the EC into an increasingly political union grew on the right
12. Margaret Thatcher – despite being a key proponent of the European single market – becoming increasingly ambivalent towards Europe
13. From the 1990s, opposition to further European integration came mainly from the right
14. Divisions within the Conservative Party led to rebellion over the Maastricht Treaty in 1992
15. The new UK Independence Party (UKIP) was a major advocate of a further referendum on continued membership of what had now become the European Union
16. The party’s growing popularity in the early 2010s resulted in UKIP being the most successful UK party in the 2014 European Parliament election
17. The Conservative Prime Minister David Cameron pledged during the campaign for the 2015 UK General Election to hold a new referendum
18. A promise which he fulfilled in 2016 following the pressure from the Eurosceptic wing of his party
19. Cameron, who had campaigned to remain, resigned after the result was for Brexit
20. He was succeeded by Theresa May, his former Home Secretary
21. She called a snap general election less than a year later, in which she lost her overall majority
22. Her minority government is supported in key votes by the Democratic Unionist Party
23. On 29 March 2017, the Government of the United Kingdom invoked Article 50 of the Treaty on European Union for Brexit
24. The UK is due to leave the EU on 29 March 2019 at 11 pm UK time
25. When the period for negotiating a Withdrawal Agreement for Brexit will end unless an extension is agreed
26. May announced the government’s intention not to seek permanent membership of the European single market or the EU customs union after leaving the EU
27. She promised to repeal the European Communities Act of 1972 and incorporate existing European Union law into UK domestic law
28. A new government department, the Department for Exiting the European Union, was created in July 2016
29. Negotiations with the EU officially started in June 2017, aiming to complete the withdrawal agreement by October 2018
30. In June 2018, the UK and the EU published a joint progress report outlining agreement on issues including customs, VAT and Euratom
31. In July 2018, the British Cabinet agreed to the Chequers plan, an outline of proposals by the UK Government
32. In November 2018, the Draft Withdrawal Agreement and Outline Political Declaration, agreed between the UK Government and the EU, was published
33. On 15 January 2019, the House of Commons voted 432 to 202 against the deal, the largest parliamentary defeat for a sitting UK government in history
34. The broad consensus among economists is that Brexit will likely reduce the UK’s real per capita income in the medium term and long term
35. The Brexit referendum itself damaged the economy
36. Studies on effects since the referendum show annual losses of £404 for the average UK household from increased inflation, and losses between 2 and 2.5 per cent of UK GDP
37. Brexit is likely to reduce immigration from European Economic Area (EEA) countries to the UK
38. Brexit also poses challenges for UK higher education and academic research
39. As of November 2018, the size of the “divorce bill”, the UK’s inheritance of existing EU trade agreements
40. Also its relations with Ireland and other EU member states remains uncertain
41. The precise impact on the UK depends on whether the process will be a “hard” or “soft” Brexit
42. Analysis by HM Treasury has found that no Brexit scenario is expected to improve the UK economic condition
43. A Treasury publication of November 2018 on the potential impact of the Chequers proposal estimated that it would leave the UK economy 3.9% worse off after 15 years compared with staying in the EU
44. Many new terms were used. They are explained here
45. Backstop: A term referring to the government’s proposal to keep Northern Ireland in some aspects of the European Union Customs Union and of the European Single Market to prevent a hard border in Ireland, so as not to compromise the Good Friday Agreement
46. Blind/ Blindfold Brexit: Coined in September 2018 to describe a scenario where the UK leaves the EU without clarity on the terms of a future trade deal
47. Brexit: is a portmanteau of “British” and “exit”. In popular usage, it was derived by analogy from Grexit, referring to a hypothetical withdrawal of Greece from the eurozone
48. Those supporting Brexit are sometimes referred to as “Brexiteers” or “Brexiters”
49. Canada Plus: is shorthand for a model where the United Kingdom leaves the European Union and signs a free trade agreement
50. This would allow the UK to control its own trade policy with non-EU countries, but would require rules of origin agreements to be reached for UK–EU trade
51. Chequers Plan: The short name given by the media to The framework for the future relationship between the United Kingdom and the European Union
52. Divorce Bill: It is expected that the UK will make a contribution toward financial commitments that it approved while still a member of the EU, but are still outstanding
53. In the first phase of negotiations the total amount was referred to as the single financial settlement, or just the settlement
54. Especially in the media, this has been called an exit bill or divorce bill, while the EU talk of settling the accounts
55. Ex Brexit Secretary Dominic Raab has said the UK will not pay its financial settlement to the EU in a no-deal scenario
56. As of November 2018, the Withdrawal Agreement states that the financial contribution will be £39 billion
57. “Hard Brexit” and “soft Brexit” are unofficial terms that are commonly used by news media to describe the prospective relationship between the UK and the EU after withdrawal
58. A hard Brexit (also called a no-deal Brexit) usually refers to the UK leaving the EU and the European Single Market with few or no deals (trade or otherwise) in place
59. Soft Brexit encompasses any deal that involves retaining membership in the European Single Market and at least some free movement of people according to European Economic Area (EEA) rules
60. The current prime minister, Theresa May, has prepared to implement the “Chequers plan,” which uses some “soft” aspects of Brexit
61. “Managed no-deal Brexit” or “managed no deal Brexit” was increasingly used near the end of 2018, in respect of the complex series of political, legal and technical decisions needed if there is no withdrawal agreement treaty
62. Norway Model: This is shorthand for a model where the United Kingdom leaves the European Union but becomes a member of the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) and the European Economic Area
63. This would allow the UK to remain in the single market but without having to be subject to the Common Fisheries Policy, Common Agricultural Policy, and the European Court of Justice
64. Remainer: Those in favour of the UK remaining in the EU are sometimes referred to as “Remainers”
65. The official campaign group for leaving the EU was Vote Leave after a contest for the designation with Leave.EU
66. The official campaign to stay in the EU, chaired by Stuart Rose, was known as Britain Stronger in Europe, or informally as ‘Remain’
67. Other campaigns supporting remaining in the EU included Conservatives In, Labour in for Britain, #INtogether (Liberal Democrats), Greens for a Better Europe, Scientists for EU, Environmentalists For Europe, Universities for Europe and Another Europe is Possible
68. The result was announced on the morning of 24 June: 51.89 per cent voted in favour of leaving the European Union
69. And 48.11 per cent voted in favour of remaining a member of the European Union
70. A petition calling for a second referendum attracted more than four million signatures
71. It was rejected by the government on 9 July
72. Replying to questions at a parliamentary committee about Parliament’s involvement in voting on the outcome of the negotiations with the EU, the Prime Minister said that “delivering on the vote of the British people to leave the European Union” was her priority
73. The shadow Brexit secretary, Keir Starmer, commented that the government did not want a vote at the beginning of the process, to trigger Article 50, nor a vote at the end
74. On the British side, the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018, section 20(1) defines “exit day” as “29 March 2019 at 11.00 p.m”
75. Following the Brexit vote, there have been several attempts to set up a new pro-European political party