So what does "Brexit" mean?

"Brexit means Brexit"

It's a phrase seemingly adopted by a significant number of our politicians recently (as demonstrated by an amusing little video which I of course can no longer find), and technically, yes, it is an accurate one.

There may be a lot of disagreement over exactly how clear it is, but it's hard to argue against the fact that there is indeed some kind of a mandate from the people for this "Brexit" thing. We live in a democracy where it was agreed by parliament that the general population would be able to make a decision on "Brexit". And if you put aside the fact that most of the campaigning and media circus around the referendum was based on a mixture of outright lies and personal attacks (since apparently this is a "post-fact" world) I don't see many strong arguments for invalidating the result.

So it seems then that "Brexit" is inevitable. And as our elected representatives keep reminding us, "Brexit means Brexit". So what's the problem?

Well the problem is that despite what they may be saying, many people have taken "Brexit" to mean a vast amount more than just "Brexit" and are using the mandate provided by the referendum to justify an array of actions and measures that go far beyond what was actually voted for. The clue is in the name. "Brexit" = British Exit. The mandate provided is for Britain to leave the E.U., nothing more. There was no vote to sever all ties with our neighbours, no vote to cripple businesses in this country by blocking free movement of trade and workers, no vote to implement xenophobic laws that discriminate against anyone who happened to lose the lottery of where they were born.

In many ways the problem here was presenting an issue full of complexity as a simple yes/no question. Everyone who voted in the referendum had their own idea of the outcome they were voting for, and yet so far the government seems to have decided to go with the view of the tabloids, likely trying to get "popular opinion" back on their side and recoup some of their prior losses to UKIP. But ultimately there has been no vote on the terms of leaving the E.U. and there exists no mandate for any kind of "hard Brexit".

As much as I might like to, I can't blame the voters for this situation. How can one expect your average person on the street to fully understand the nuances of how a decision as big as this might affect so many aspects of the country and our daily lives? Yes, it is important for any decisions that are taken to represent the general population, but we don't employ MPs purely to vote based on a simple majority. It is their job to do the due diligence in terms of research and make decisions on our behalf. What this absolutely does not mean is that it is up to the government and their cronies to make those decisions outright. They are entitled to present potential options, but there must be a full debate in parliament about any terms of any "Brexit".

At this point it feels like the term "Brexit" is being used as an excuse for anything and everything. I realise I'm once again risking being labelled a "Remoaner", but even though I may disagree wholeheartedly with the idea of leaving the E.U. I do accept the result of the referendum. What I don't accept is the blatant racism, xenophobia and ignorance it seems to have unleashed on this country. And what I cannot stand is this pretence that these feelings are representative of this nation as a whole, legitimised by a referendum that could never justify anything more than the activating of Article 50.

Surely the least we can expect from an elected government is that they take the time to fully discuss the implications of any deals to be made?

"Brexit means Brexit", but that's all it means.