Re: "lazy economics ... allow migration to give us economic growth"
>Is the working class better off than 30 years ago -- on an absolute scale, or compared to their peers?
I think very few people are better off. In Aus, salaries have risen to twelve times their 1970 amount, but house prices have risen forty times.
I think we've spent more and received more stuff. But new iphones and other trinkets are nothing compared to the massive increase in debt (mostly mortgage and government). Now we *need* two salaries just to pay for the house and who can afford three children, even if you want them? You can forget the old meritocracy of the best and brightest going to uni because education is a good thing... now uni fees are just a mortgage for your job.
I suspect the immigration issue with Brexit is overplayed. I'm sure it plays some part - there's little financial benefit to be seen to migration into the UK for voters. More of an indictment is how the political classes and the chatteratti had no idea what most people think. The BBC doesn't help by being a very large echo-chamber for that sector of society. I remember reading an article on the reaction to the "you may beat your wife lightly" decree from some Imam in Pakistan. *All* (eight I think) of the "vaguely related" articles on the side bar were about homosexuality. Whatever you think of the debate, its actually not a topic which adversely impacts over 95% of the population. All the "woe is us for Brexit" from the BBC completely misses the fact that over half the population disagree. All the articles were also exceedingly speculatory - little more than random statements about things which had no reason to take place, "but might." There is so much ideological irrelevance to the lives of the populace ingrained in the institutions of the establishment.
Brexit isn't about immigration, its about control. Its about having a voice in politics and both Westminster (with its centralised party machines) and Brussels (with its "ever close union") demonstrably take power away from the not only the ordinary people, but even the grass roots political activists. It doesn't matter how "perfect" the democratic process is, if the decisions are made behind the scenes (hello TTPT, hello council of ministers) and if the details are manipulated (hello ward boundary changes) then people are quite within their rights to put a stop to the whole lot. Cameron accidentally gave the people some power in the referendum, never dreaming they would have the audacity to use it. Being under the delusion that people follow politicians, he thought people wouldn't follow Farage et al. They didn't follow Cameron, they didn't follow Farage, they just don't like where the EU is going. Europe's fine - a nice place to visit, but why cede control to it? How many of the voters trade with Europe? How many of the voters think Europe is financially stable? How many will be devastated if French Brie becomes more expensive than Somerset Brie?
Even in the worst case, with Brexit a mess, its our mess, and that's ok. Was it "populist"? Not in the sense of people being led (astray) by a charismatic leader - Farage is not, Boris is not, May is not, Gove is not. A hint of democratic power was given to the people and the result was self-determination. That is the point of democracy is it not? Though I'm pretty sure it will be quite some time before a politician makes that mistake again. Let's hope the next revolution is just as bloodless.