A think tank report which yesterday dominated news bulletins with a scathing attack on the conduct of the Brexit referendum was written by Remain supporters, Heat Street can reveal.
The Electoral Reform Society blasted the EU referendum as “dire” and said that the rules on popular votes must be changed forever to avoid repeating the experience.
It held up the Scottish referendum – which the Establishment won – as a model of good conduct and called for sweeping reforms of the system.
One of these was a troubling call for a Ministry of Truth-style public body to police debate, dictate which claims were too “misleading” for public consumption, and punish offenders.
However, a little digging reveals that many of those behind the report are bitterly disappointed not only with the conduct of the vote – but also the result.
Many of them tweeted their dismay when Britain voted to ditch the EU, and we could find no evidence that any of them were among the 52% who voted to leave.
The report itself, which headlines its introduction “The people have spoken. Or have they?” was mostly authored by Will Brett, a Labour councillor in Hackney.
In the days following the referendum he tweeted a link to an article claiming that there was “one silver lining” to the Brexit vote – with the obvious implication that the result itself was a disaster:
One silver lining: could this be the start of a political re-awakening? https://t.co/JVFxF1lTIo pic.twitter.com/4h9kN1AOfe
— Will Brett (@williamdbrett) June 27, 2016
Doug Cowan and Chris Terry, credited in the report as contributors, were even starker in their opinions:
https://twitter.com/MrDougCowan/status/746202996191571968
@tallgeekychap @DanielJHannan Exactly. want the best Brexit possible, but I voted Remain is as thought leaving was a bad idea under any circ
— Chris Terry (@CJTerry) August 9, 2016
https://twitter.com/MrDougCowan/status/746226539134517248
Josiah Mortimer, the society’s spokesman and a Left Foot Forward contributing editor, was particularly outspoken:
The most sovereign country in the world is North Korea. I'm not sure we should prioritise sovereignty over everything else. #EURefResults
— Josiah Mortimer (@josiahmortimer) June 24, 2016
I think the left now has to accept that we live in a right-wing country. Depressing but true #EUref
— Josiah Mortimer (@josiahmortimer) June 24, 2016
As well as apparently advancing the political interests of its staffers, the ERS proposals for more bureaucracy in referendums – and a longer voting period – would also mean more cash in their pockets.
According to the organisation’s latest financial report, the society is a minority shareholder (46 percent) of, and financially dependent on, Electoral Reform Services Limited, a company that directly profits from elections or referendums.
The think tank suggested introducing a “minimum 6 months campaign period”, “official, publicly-funded resource for stimulating deliberative discussion”, and greater oversight by the public bodies.
All of these cost money – and would naturally generate extra business opportunities for the the company in future referendums.
Heat Street has put these concerns to the ERS, and is awaiting comment.