Ruth Davidson has said the views of the 48% who voted to remain in the EU in June’s referendum “must be heard” as she called for an end to the bitter fighting between people on either side of the Brexit divide.
The leader of the Scottish Conservatives used a speech to the Institute of Directors to describe conversations with leave voters who felt they were being branded “thick and racist” and others fed up with being “mocked as remoaners”.
Davidson, who was a passionate campaigner to remain in the EU, warned of the ongoing tensions that had been blown open in the wake of the Scottish referendum.
“Let me tell you, keeping these divisions open doesn’t end well ... So I’d like to make a plea. Remainers need to accept that leavers are not racist for having concerns about the EU and our system of immigration,” she said.
“And – for leavers – it’s time to follow the lead of people like Dan Hannan who point out that the views of the 48% of people across the UK who backed remain must be heard. Voicing concerns about Brexit isn’t ‘remoaning’, there are genuine issues that need to be discussed.”
Davidson said that Britain should not march towards Brexit with a “macho, beer-swilling posturing at the golf club bar” attitude but instead a polite and sensible approach.
“Perhaps it’s just as well that we’ve got a woman in charge at No 10,” she added, saying that Theresa May did not drink beer or play golf, but did recognise the importance of “relationship management” with the EU 27.
Davidson instead turned her fire on Ukip politicians, calling on them to “grow up” and stop gloating about the referendum result to EU leaders.
In a powerful speech in which she spoke of her experience breaking through as a gay woman, Davidson also warned that the decision to leave the EU was testing Britain’s reputation as a great liberal democracy and a beacon for openness and tolerance.
She said the key was to ensure that British politicians adopted a positive “attitude and tone” as the process of Brexit unfolded.
“I believe the way in which we leave the European Union, and the way we conduct ourselves over these coming years is going to be vital in how we view ourselves and in deciding whether we get a good deal for us, and for Europe,” she said.
“The global community is now watching to see how we comport ourselves,” she added, saying that there was a choice to give way to what some called “a nasty vision of a backward-looking, introspective Britain” or to step forward and engage.
Davidson also said that the referendum had not been on what type of Brexit might unfold.
There has been a suggestion that May wants an end to discussions of hard or soft options and wants instead to focus on a “grey Brexit”. Davidson said: “Our decision to leave the European Union hasn’t determined which path we’ll take. That’s a decision we’ll make as a nation.
“And one indicator is how we carry ourselves as we proceed in the months ahead.”
She also launched a blistering attack on Ukip politicians, calling on them to stop gleefully rubbing Europe’s noses in it.
“So I say to those Ukip politicians: when they chuckle and bray about the result in June and how they’ve taught Europe a lesson, grow up.
“Let’s show a bit more respect for our European neighbours, and allies please. We should do that for its own sake, because it is the right thing to do. But even, if that is beyond their understanding, we should do it for reasons of self-interest too.”
She said that discussions with the EU 27 could not simply depend on economic rationalism, and would include an emotional element.
“We are not going to get a good deal if the image we project to Europe is that of Nigel Farage needling Europeans by telling them their economies depend on hungry British consumers. Let’s show some maturity. That way, many people in Europe might start to see things from our point of view.”
Davidson joked that no one – not even the Lib Dem leader, Tim Farron – was so in love with the European project that they slept “underneath a European Union duvet cover”. But she said they did want to maintain an important, transactional relationship.
