Local residents and businesses in Greenwich & Lewisham are being asked to give their views on Brexit and what it means for them and their families.
A year on from the vote to leave the European Union (EU), Local London Assembly Member, Len Duvall AM, has launched a survey to get local views on how Brexit will impact on a wide range of issues including jobs, the cost of living and public services. Mr Duvall said the government have a “duty to listen to what Londoners want” out of the negotiations.
In the EU in June 2016, 48.1 per cent of voters chose to remain in the EU, whilst 51.9 per cent chose to leave.
Yet London bucked the national trend with 59.9 per cent choosing remain. In Greenwich 56% voted remain, with 44% voting leave. In Lewisham 70% voted remain, with 30% voting leave. The majority of businesses in London and the UK also backed continued EU membership.
Whilst polling shows that the majority of Londoners would still like to remain in the EU, negotiations are underway to leave the union with Brexit expected to be completed by March 2019. Mr Duvall is now asking local people and business about the type of Brexit they would like to see and what issues they think the government should focus on in the negotiations.
He will present the findings in a report later this year to ensure local priorities are taken on board by Ministers.
Local London Assembly Member, Len Duvall AM, said:
We’re a year on from Brexit, people have had some time to process the result, and we now want to hear what people’s thoughts and concerns are as we start to move through the negotiations.
Brexit negotiations are going to take time and there is a lot of uncertainty, but it is vital local people and local businesses have a voice. The government have a duty to listen to what Londoners want out of the deal they’re trying to secure.
I’ll be asking the Mayor to ensure local priorities are fed through to Ministers and are truly taken on board.
ENDS
Notes to editors
- Mr Duvall’s survey is available here
- A breakdown of last year’s referendum results are below:
- A borough by borough breakdown of the referendum results can be found here
- Recent polling by ComRes showed that the Brexit is seen as the main challenge facing London’s business over the next twelve months
- Recent polling by Opinium, found here, shows the majority of Londoners still want to remain in the EU
- Len Duvall AM is the London Assembly Member for Greenwich and Lewisham