Understanding the social and cultural bases of Brexit - Professor Tak Wing Chan

Since the 2016 EU Referendum, two narratives have been prominent in the public debate surrounding the outcome of the vote. The first narrative sees Brexit as a revolt of the ‘economically left-behinds’, while the second narrative attributes Brexit to the resurgence of an English nationalism. In his lecture, Tak Wing Chan uses data from a large scale and nationally representative survey to evaluate these two narratives. He considers whether Brexit support is associated with neighbourhood deprivation, concentration of migrants, and exposure to the 'Chinese import shock'. He also assesses how social class, social status, low income, and expressions of Britishness and Englishness shape ‘Leave’ or ‘Remain’ sympathies.