To ask if Leave voters would still vote the same way, knowing what they know now? And what people who didn't vote now feel?

[longestlurkerever]

I think I'd find it easier to accept the result if I knew that the majority of the country were still happy with the decision to leave, now that they realise that the economic predictions were not scaremongering, that there really is no fallback plan for how to forge a new deal with the EU and now that the leave campaign appear to be backtracking on many of their claims.

No judgment, it's just that the decision is not binding yet. There are reports in the media of people regretting their vote to leave but I don't know how widespread a feeling that is.

*Their, not they're - sorry (still half asleep!)

Voted leave and more than happy - I'd rather be in a tiny lifeboat than a sinking ship full of bureaucrats who don't even like us, they just need us and our money Yes, there will be short term pain, but I've always looked further than the end of my nose. I'm confident in a brighter future for my children.

I think perhaps it is too early to ask this question!

Happy with my vote, I'm sure there are a few on both sides who aren't though.

I voted leave and would do so again. Those who voted remain need to stop being poor losers - yes, there was a narrow majority, but they wouldn't be whinging if there had been a narrow majority in THEIR favour.

Am not shocked by the response of the remainers (and I agree Aero, that if Brexit had lost we would not have responded with same degree of childishness). Have been in academia two decades now and intolerance, rigidity and adherence to orthodoxy getting worse. Of course, it's dressed up, so disguised, and hard to challenge because it has a liberal 'caring' face. It is deeply contemptuous of the working classes, and behaves paternalistically towards them. Many of the experts who offered views on the impact of Brexit, and the columnists etc, come from same sphere. That's not to say their views are wrong of course, but I know how stifling academia can be, how scared people can be to speak their own minds and how they cherry pick research evidence for own ends.

I voted remain and was horrified by the result, although I saw it coming a mile off. But I'm trying to move on from the anger and railing of yesterday to try and understand what's happened here - why people voted leave (beyond those who are misinformed/racist etc), to try and glean whether there is any positive way out of this.

However, here are the things that worry me. We don't know how the economics of this will play out, and leave voters on this thread seem optimistic. What is this based on? Moody's downgrading our credit rating to negative would seem to be very bad for our prospects - what do you know that they don't? Car making is an important UK industry and many large Japanese companies saw us as their route into the single market, thus choosing to base their operations here. Naturally they are now thinking of elsewhere. Ditto Aerospace. We have something like 50+ individual trade agreements to negotiate to see our way out of this - do we have the expertise to do this? Financial services are our biggest export and we appear to have made it more difficult for ourselves to operate within this industry - how was it in our interest to do this?

Also, one of the main functions of the EU was to maintain peace within Europe and ensure there were no more wars. Our leaving has set off the process of destabilising this, and those voices calling for its ultimate demise are distinctly of the right-wing extremist camp. If the alliance falls apart there are some very unsavoury factions looking to reap the advantage - not least Putin. Do leave voters not share these worries?

I voted leave and am very relieved I did seeing as how close the vote was

Indie, your anxieties are understandable and legitimate. I worried about all those issues (excessively) before putting X in the 'leave box', but decided (on balance) that we'd be better off out. In response to your questions, apparently, there are very few people with the skills to negotiate trade agreements, but other non-EU countries create trade agreements with the EU, so we'd do the same (and we'd have to develop the skills to do this effectively). The EU passport for the financial services sector is a problem but is not insurmountable (passporting might be one of the issues negotiated at exit www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-36630606). It is NATO that has maintained peace, not the EU (www.spectator.co.uk/2016/05/look-beyond-the-eu-we-need-to-talk-about-nato/). Yes, there are some unsavoury characters calling for the EU's demise. But there is an honourable, left wing tradition of Euroscepticism (a la Tony Benn and others www.newstatesman.com/politics/2015/06/john-king-left-wing-case-leaving-eu).

indie - as a Leaver I do agree that maintaining peace between the member states is a very positive part of what has become the EU. However this intention was maintaining peace within continental Europe and overcoming boundary disputes regarding mineral resources. With the exception of the 'Irish' situation there is no reason for the UK to be so closely bound to the 'Continent' in order to maintain Peace there. We can still be allies. The USA is far more diplomatically important.

The only real negotiation difficulties in regards to the Republic of Ireland will be due to their EU membership and any constraints placed upon them by the EU in negotiating with the UK. The EU (pre-Brexit) had already started to challenge some existing (pre-EU) Anglo/Irish agreements as discriminatory to other EU nationals. The UK and Ireland must have the freedom to negotiate what is best for both countries and not what is best for the EU and this should be addressed
in the Brexit process.

Scotland is a different scenario, but as far as I know there are no plans for invasion, so Peace should be maintained.

How patronising and insulting to call a major recession coming our way a 'bumpy time'.

Voted leave and would again. I carefully considered my vote and nothing has changed. If anything my feelings have strengthened knowing that several other EU countries are feeling similar. I would rather be first out and get back to strength before EU implodes.

Also, the EU didn't try to keep us in did they? They gave Cameron nothing when he asked. lots of the remain camp said the EU needed serious reform. How would we get it after voting remain when we couldn't get it when they knew we had a referendum looming?

I'm not behaving badly and calling people names. I'm not disrespecting the vote or being a poor loser. I'm genuinely frightened and worried and cannot see anyone answering the things I've asked like how does the Calais issue get resolved?

No leave voter has to explain their thinking, of course not, but given that many leave voters are utterly confident and optimistic about the future, it might be kind to share some of the evidence to help those of us who accept the result but are scared by it?

I think one of the reasons I am struggling to accept that this result is so final is that it was never really a suitable question for a referendum. It's not really a "yes/no" kind of question is it. It begs a whole host of further questions about what you plan to put in its place and how to mitigate the worst impacts of leaving. You can't ask 17 million people what they had in mind for the future and our elected representatives are struggling to come to terms with what next as much as the rest of the remain voters.

how does the Calais issue get resolved?

The agreement with France is separate to EU membership and the president of France has said it will stand.

I felt torn...I voted leave. I'd vote leave again. I wish we could stay in an EU that was more democratic, less wasteful, smaller and with no threat of an EU army or more countries (particularly Turkey) joining...

Yes this. I spent weeks watching and reading as much as I could and went back and forth with my thinking but I voted leave and would do so again. But I feel sad that it had to come to this. The Eu has become almost unanswerable to anyone and as an individual I felt powerless and trapped knowing that our government had very little sway over Brussels. As far as race/immigration goes it didn't even figure in my decision. I work in the Nhs our staffing is made up of a truly diverse number of people from all over the world and I love it. It's so interesting to meet people who have led different lives to me, they bring new skills, new experiences, new languages, we exchange favourite family recipes, music, ideas, learn about family traditions, etc some of my best friends are not originally from the uk. I am always in awe of people who can learn a second, third and even fourth language and then to be able to practice medicine in that language blows my mind. I am deeply offended by some of the remain side assuming I'm a knuckle dragging idiot just because I voted leave.

Here here gingerboy

Pale, I've never said I am optimistic for the (immediate) future. I am also scared, but I would not change my vote. I voted according to my conscience (the EU is bloated, unresponsive, opaque and operates within a very 'fluid' democratic framework) and a belief that it will implode in near future (too many tensions, many European populations resisting further integration, crises in the south). I do think, though, that we'll see this through (but it will be hard - and I speak as someone who is now poor, having been made redundant and working several p/t jobs in badly paid academia with DC and a lone parent to boot. I am not cushioned from any of the blows).

If by some miracle there is another referendum, I would vote Leave again. Although the petition is a joke anyway, many of the votes aren't even coming from the UK.

Before the vote we were warned of short time financial instability which accounts for the credit rating drop and the currency plummet. There is no guarantee we will hit a recession although I will admit, the obvious hit to the economy was the only thing that made me doubtful of voting Leave.

Germany, Canada and USA have all came forward and said they would like to go ahead with special trade deals with the UK. Negotiations are still to be made with Europe.

I do not believe Scotland will leave the UK but if they do then that would be for the people of Scotland to decide. It's very unclear if Scotland will be allowed membership as a single entity to the EU. Countries such as Spain are likely to veto them for their own personal interests if Scotland had to reapply. If they were accepted however, they may be forced to start anew with no special benefits like what the UK as a whole was granted. For example they would very likely have to change currency.

I am pleased that leaving means a more democratic UK which will make all future decisions ourselves. I strongly believe all laws should should be decided here. I don't care if 7% is a small number, I want the amount of laws forced by the EU commission to be zero. The EU isn't doing well and there is growing concerns within other countries, some of which want their own referendums. The chaos caused may not be worth it for some but everyone's vote is counted the same and this was the decision made.

Perfectly happy

Didn't vote wish I had, would vote remain .
Even if not all brexiters are racist the behaviour now of the ones that were is just grim. I feel horrible being associated with it .

Thanks for your response to my questions user14. However, I can't say they've done much to reassure me.

Saying the financial services issue is 'a problem but not insurmountable' sounds like patching up after a crisis, but this is a crisis of our own making. It still beggars the question why would anyone say we are in better position having done this?

Your Spectator article does not say that NATO has maintained peace - quite the opposite. It says the EU has been of vital importance for the former Easter Bloc in protecting them from Russian expansionism, and talks of NATO's reluctance to challenge it. The article states what NATO should and could do, not what it's actually doing. It did nothing to help Ukraine, as we know.

And as for the USA being 'far more diplomatically important' Float, in a few months time a moronic madman could be in charge.

So, things still look none-too-rosy from my point of view

cbigs - I've been reading through many social media sites and forums and don't understand how you've come to that conclusion frankly. Most of the nastier comments I've seen are aimed mainly at the leave voters. Including branding them racist, uneducated, stupid, poor... including hopes the working class suffers the most from any future fallout.

Mumsnet has been a prime example of this.

Maybe should start a thread 'all those that voted for Cameron do you regret your vote now?'

Jump ship at first sign of trouble, just goes to show that he didn't care to listen what us little folk had to say. Shit happens, deal with it you carry on trying to do whats best. That's what a true leader would do.

So are you disappointed that you elected a leader that wasn't prepared to try? Do you still respect him given the position he has now left open for his replacement?

Do you not think he should of held his hands up and said ok I fucked up, you didn't agree with me but I will still try sort this and do whats best no matter how hard or easy.

Stop fucking blaming the 'leave' voters