Campaigning in the United Kingdom European Union membership referendum, 2016
| United Kingdom European Union Membership referendum, 2016 | ||
| choice | votes | % |
| Leave the European Union | 17,410,742 | 51.89 |
| Remain a member of the European Union | 16,141,241 | 48.11 |
| Valid votes | 33.551.983 | 99.92 |
| Invalid or blank votes | 25.359 | 0.08 |
| Total votes | 33,557,342 | 100.00 |
| Registered voters and turnout | 46,500,001 | 72.21 |
| Voting age population and turnout | 51,356,768 | 65.38 |
| Source: Electoral Commission; UNDESA (UK VAP); US Census Bureau (Gibraltar VAP) | ||
Case Analysis
1. Summarize the information of the text above. What do you know about other European economies’ debates on leaving the EU?
2. Use the Internet or other appropriate mass media sources to estimate the public opinion on the pro-Brexit vote.
3. Write a summary on the case. Follow the instructions given below:
♦ outline the purpose of the case study
♦ describe the field of research
♦ outline the issues and findings (without detail)
♦ give a clear picture of the essential contents of the study
♦ note any assumptions made
Role Play
Situation
A general election is an opportunity for people in every part of the UK to choose their MP – the person who will represent their local area in the House of Commons for up to five years. There is normally a choice of several candidates in each area. The next general election will take place on Thursday 8 June 2017. This will be an early general election called upon by Theresa May. Brexit is a major issue at the UK general election - here's what we know so far about where the main parties across the UK stand.
· The Conservatives campaigned in favor of leaving the EU
· The Labour Party campaigned to stay in the EU
· The Scottish National Party campaigned to stay in the EU
· The Liberal Democrats campaigned to stay in the EU
· UKIP campaigned in favor of leaving the EU
· Plaid Cymru campaigned to stay in the EU
· Ulster Unionists campaigned to stay in the EU
Task : Act out a pre-election discussion among the British politicians and economists supporting different political parties’ views on the current political and economic situation in the UK. Decide the following:
1. How important is the role of general election in the stabilization and government in encouraging business and economic development in the UK?
2. What exactly does the UK economy need to survive and prosper during the withdrawal period?
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Speaker A
You are the Chairman. You open the meeting, chair the discussion of the reasons for a call for an early general election as well as the consequences of the UK’s pro-Brexit vote. Make your guests share opinions and make conclusions about reasonable solutions to see where the main parties across the UK stand.
Make use of the helpful phrases:
Ø I am well aware of…
Ø The point is we can’t wait for people to be happy with…
Ø Anyway it doesn’t matter. What matters is that…
Ø Although none of us would argue that…
Ø It is clear that…
You start with mentioning the fact that the UK's forthcoming general election is of great importance. While many critics of Britain’s withdrawal from the European Union hope that an early general election will give them a chance to obstruct the process, current opinion polls suggest it will do the opposite, strengthening Mrs. May’s power to force through any deal she negotiates.
Speaker B
Make use of the helpful phrases:
Ø I am quite sure that….
Ø The majority of the population…
Ø A very small percentage of…
Ø That may be true, but…
Ø My personal feeling is that…
Ø Well, I am calling for couple of reasons…
Prime Minister Theresa May: You represent the Conservative Party. You were against Brexit before the EU referendum; now you say there can be no turning back and that “Brexit means Brexit”. You call for a general election because it will strengthen your hand in negotiations with the EU. You say your Conservative Party needs a new mandate: five years of strong and stable leadership, to see you through the negotiations. You plan to withdraw the UK from the single market and strike a new free trade deal. Besides, most Tory MPs strongly support the UK leaving. You have full support of your party.
If your Conservative Party wins a majority, you would not be required to call another general election until 2022. That would allow for much more time to build a new relationship with the European Union and would lessen the chances of a disorderly departure from the bloc — often likened to walking off a cliff edge.
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Speaker C
Make use of the helpful phrases:
Ø Could you be more specific, please and …
Ø I am certain of one thing, …
Ø And another thing,…
Ø Do you mean to say that …
Ø There is one more thing I’d like to consider.
The leader of the opposition Labour Party Jeremy Corbyn: You represent the Labour Party. You start with stating that your party campaigned against Brexit in the referendum. However, now you say that the result must be honoured. Your mean that you will support Brexit provided workers’ rights, access to the benefits of the single market and other requirements are met. You want MPs to have a decisive say on what happens once negotiations are complete. You guarantee the right of EU nationals living and working in the UK to stay in the country from “day one’ of a Labour government.
You welcome the opportunity for an early election. You think this election is about the Conservative government’s failure to rebuild the economy and living standards for the majority. You want to shift the focus away from Britain’s exit from the EU, an issue on which your party is badly divided.
Speaker D
Make use of the helpful phrases:
Ø At the same time, however, …
Ø If you permit me…
Ø The chart shows that…
Ø It is clear from the figures that..
Nicola Sturgeon: You are the leader of the Scottish National Party. For the SNP, the outcome of the EU referendum is a perfect illustration of how Scotland’s democratic wishes are always at risk of being overturned by votes cast in England. Scotland voted to remain in the EU (it voted Remain by 62% to 38%). You are pushing for Scotland to have a special status after Brexit including remaining in the single market. You call for a second independence referendum before the Brexit package has been finalized. Things have so far not worked out in the way you might have hoped.
Speaker E
Make use of the helpful phrases:
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Ø The statistics say that…
Ø As I see it, …
Ø The point is that …
Ø We can hardly ignore it.
Tim Farron: You are the leader of the Liberal Democrats who are strongly pro-EU. Liberal Democrats are the only party that has consistently championed Britain’s membership of the European Union, because you believe that Britain’s best chance to succeed is within the EU. You respect the outcome of the referendum held in June 2016, you believe that Britain is a more prosperous country when you are part of the world’s largest economy, working in partnership with your closest neighbours and allies to tackle the biggest challenges. You believe that free trade is a good thing. It creates jobs, increases prosperity and helps pay for things like the NHS, schools and public services. You promise to stop what you call a “disastrously hard Brexit”. You say you will fight with “every fibre of your being” to protect existing aspects of EU membership, such as the single market and the free movement of people. You insist on another referendum – this time on the terms of the deal between the UK and the EU.
Speaker A
Chairman
Make use of the following helpful phrases:
Ø Surely, … is not the only solution available…
Ø Let me sum up everything that has been said.
Ø I’d like to finalise our today’s discussion by …
Ø There is compelling evidence indicating that…
Ø Let’s take a closer look at …
Ø Moreover, …
Ø And, finally, …
You say that after Mrs. May’s announcement about early elections on Tuesday, the pound rose against other currencies, suggesting that the financial markets believe that Mrs. May will win a larger majority in Parliament and a smoother path to leaving the European Union. Close the meeting by thanking all the participants for the discussion of the problem.
GRAMMAR BACK UP
The Infinitive
Translate the sentences into Russian paying attention to the function of the infinitive.
The infinitive as a subject
1. To raise the standard of living was the Government’s main objective.
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2. It would be impossible for all the people of a country to vote on every important issue that comes about.
3. To live means to survive.
The infinitive as part of a predicate
1. This can only occur after an individual has been socialized by its parents, family, extended family and extended social networks.
2. Social identity theory states that social behaviour will vary between interpersonal behaviour and intergroup behavior.
3. Different voting systems may give very different results, particularly in cases where there is no clear majority preference.
The infinitive as an attribute
1. The head of the department was a person to receive a telephone call from the trade union leader.
2. That was the last (first) opportunity to earn money.
3. Obtaining better training is a way to derive a comparative advantage.
4. Power is at the heart of a political system, for it is defined as the ability to exercise one's will ever others.
The infinitive as an object
1. The politician had learnt to feel at once whether the information was valuable.
2. Employees were not allowed to leave the room since it was a serious offence against official regulations.
3. His boss had ordered the official to send the note immediately.
4. A number of studies have reported that the media do not tend to influence the masses of people directly.
5. Citizens are willing to become involved in political life if they trust political leaders.
6. Each generation must be encouraged to accept a society's basic political values and its particular methods of decision making.
The infinitive as part of a complex object
1. I never saw you act this way before.
2. The Chancellor of the Exchequer ordered the secretary to refer to the previous instructions dated 25th of January.
3. The Government want the investigators to assess the damage.
4. The leader of opposition made the governing party issue a statement.
5. A simple choice does not allow voters to express the ordering or the intensity of their feeling.
The infinitive as an adverbial modifier
a) of purpose
1. They did their best to prevent turmoil and disorder.
2. T o discuss its day-to-day performance the Cabinet has to meet regularly.
3. Promotion of mistrust refers to the parenting practices of socializing children to be wary of people from other races.
4. Democracies are generally maintained through a mode of participation known as representative democracy, in which certain individuals are selected to speak for the people.
5. A voting system contains rules for valid voting, and how votes are counted and aggregated to yield a final result.
b) of result
1. Mr. Roberts was experienced enough to investigate the reasons for the misuse of public funds.
2. All the members of the impartial panel were too busy to go up to the TV studio.
The infinitive as parenthesis*.
1. To begin with, Sociologists note that people are more likely to participate actively in political life if they feel that they have the ability to influence politicians and the political order.
2. To tell the truth, identifying a form of government appears not to be easy.
3. To cut a long story short, voting weight is not the same thing as voting power.
Note. Mind the following structures:
1. Why not ask for another quotation?
2. We cannot but meet the delivery terms.
PRACTICE
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