Brexit gives Britain chance of renewal – we must stop squandering opportunity | Politics | News

As Britain emerged as the world’s most dynamic and fastest-growing economy, our then Prime Minister, Lord Palmerston, declared that we had no permanent enemies and no permanent friends, only interests to pursue for the time being. What followed was Pax Britannica, a world order based on the power of the British navy and the financial influence of the City of London. This period witnessed an era of unparalleled social development and freedom at home and goodwill abroad, exemplified by Britain’s sole enforcement of the abolition of slavery. All of this was a result of increased wealth resulting from a growing economy. Economic growth is the beginning and end of life, freedom and the pursuit of happiness. Therefore, in the same way, everything that negatively affects economic growth is the enemy of prosperity and well-being.

It was during the Palmerston period and just before that there were major scientific and technical advances. But later generations disillusioned the UK with overseas entanglements such as the League of Nations and the failure of realism, as increasingly left-liberal elites began to “smok their own drugs” and forget that the privileged position of our scepter island depended on “dark satanic mills”. Palmerston’s words were forgotten. Managed decline arose from the extreme effects of imperialism in the first half of the twentieth century and continues to the present day.

In the salad days of Pax Britannica, Britain was on a par with the US, in fact, a major investor in North America, dominating trade with India and China, and our biggest rivals were in Europe. Now we are dwarfed by America, Europe is in deep decline, and China and India have reemerged.

We have a great opportunity to pursue this. Post-Brexit Britain is positioned as a re-emerging nation, and we should think of ourselves in the mode of the Glorious Revolution of 1688, a buccaneering Britain still at the forefront of technical advances such as artificial intelligence, life sciences, defence, nuclear.

There are still natural resources and extractive industries: hydrogas and coal onshore, oil and gas offshore and in offshore areas such as the Falkland Islands. We are also a services superpower, and we expertly trade and finance other people’s goods and services, as we have done for centuries.

Palmerston’s wise words are as relevant today as ever, especially in this age of renewed global realism, a return to the age-old doctrine that “might is right.”

It is a wake-up call that there is no such thing as power politics and international law, only agreements between sovereign states will be the rule for now for the foreseeable future. The only question is whether our elites, especially the political classes and the media, can adapt to this old reality.

Brexit Britain should seek to engage in world trade with anyone that benefits Britain. As a re-emerging nation, we must absolutely become capitalists. We must embrace the free market, free trade and seize the opportunities of Brexit.

We must accept the facts that nations compete and borders matter. The need for a vigorous defense of our interests is long overdue. Even Adam Smith decided that freedom had to be strongly defended and that this was a matter for the state.

While we need to establish good relations with all nations, it must also be recognized that not all nations play the same game. Some regimes, whether we call them communist or national socialist, are strictly statist in the way they organize themselves, their economy and their political position.

Good trade relations with China are admirable, but the Independent Business Network’s report on dependence on China showed that industries’ over-reliance on China leads to extreme vulnerability and a threat to the defense of our freedoms.

Our recent trade deals with India are to be welcomed and, like all our new Brexit-focused trade deals, are the seeds of later developments, but this cannot mean an open door to immigration that does not serve our national interests.

We should aim to attract the talented and wealthy. We must be careful in trying to retain the talented and wealthy who are determined to leave. As a measure of the country’s future, gross migration is much more important than net migration.

The Trans-Pacific agreement has opened up the potential for greater trade and the possibility of others joining the network.

Most importantly, Britain should not be afraid of being alone. Standing strong and alone is not a position of isolation, but a position of strength. The opportunity to choose with whom we trade and on what terms.

It gives us the ability to form alliances according to the circumstances of the moment, avoiding complications that threaten our wealth and our freedom to act in our own interests. It’s about being an adult instead of acting like a child.

It requires economic power derived from wealth creation. This means investing in our Armed Forces so that we are untethered and armed to the teeth with a network of agreements that include paying for a truly independent nuclear deterrent separate from that of the United States. The actions required to achieve these will lead to greater prosperity and thus become part of a virtuous cycle.

Given a government with a clear vision and determination, post-Brexit Britain could be a truly reemerging nation in every sense.

John Longworth is an entrepreneur, businessman, Chairman of the Independent Business Network and a former Member of the European Parliament.