Open Britain is a British pro-
European Union
The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been de ...
campaign group set up in the
aftermath of the 2016 European Union referendum.
Background
Following the referendum, the official remain group in the
2016 EU referendum
The United Kingdom European Union membership referendum, commonly referred to as the EU referendum or the Brexit referendum, took place on 23 June 2016 in the United Kingdom (UK) and Gibraltar to ask the electorate whether the country shoul ...
,
Britain Stronger in Europe
Britain Stronger in Europe (formally The In Campaign Limited) was an advocacy group which campaigned in favour of the United Kingdom's continued membership of the European Union in the 2016 British referendum. It was launched at the Old Trum ...
, changed its name on 25 August 2016 to Open Britain.
Open Britain defines itself as campaigning for the United Kingdom to be open and inclusive, open for business, open to trade and investment, open to talent and hard work, open to Europe and to the world. It is originally campaigned for Britain to remain in the Single Market as part of the outcome of the
Brexit negotiations.
In October 2016, Open Britain launched a 'Write to Remain' letter-writing campaign directed at
Theresa May
Theresa Mary May, Lady May (; née Brasier; born 1 October 1956) is a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party from 2016 to 2019. She previously served in David Cameron's cabi ...
asking her to guarantee the right of EU nationals to stay in the UK.
The individuals involved in the campaign group include former Ministers
Pat McFadden
Patrick Bosco McFadden (born 26 March 1965) is a British politician serving as Shadow Chief Secretary to the Treasury since 2021. A member of the Labour Party, he has served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Wolverhampton South East since 20 ...
(Labour) and
Norman Lamb (Liberal Democrat). Conservatives
Anna Soubry
Anna Mary Soubry (; born 7 December 1956) is a British barrister, journalist and former politician who was Member of Parliament (MP) for Broxtowe from 2010 to 2019. Known for her support of pro-European policies, she was originally elected ...
,
Nicky Morgan
Nicola Ann Morgan, Baroness Morgan of Cotes, (; born 10 October 1972) is a British politician who served as Secretary of State for Education and Minister for Women and Equalities from 2014 to 2016 and Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, ...
, and
Dominic Grieve
Dominic Charles Roberts Grieve (born 24 May 1956) is a British barrister and former politician who served as Shadow Home Secretary from 2008 to 2009 and Attorney General for England and Wales from 2010 to 2014. He served as the Member of Parl ...
cut their ties with Open Britain in April 2017 after it began to campaign against the re-election of anti-EU members of parliament, mostly Conservatives.
Open Britain continues to campaign in collaboration with other major pro-European campaign groups such as Britain for Europe and
European Movement UK. It launched and promotes
People's Vote
People's Vote was a United Kingdom campaign group that unsuccessfully campaigned for a second referendum following the UK's Brexit vote to leave the European Union (EU) in 2016. The group was launched in April 2018 at which four Members of Pa ...
in April 2018 to campaign for a
second referendum.
In October 2019, shortly before the
2019 general election, CEO James McGrory was forced out
of
People's Vote
People's Vote was a United Kingdom campaign group that unsuccessfully campaigned for a second referendum following the UK's Brexit vote to leave the European Union (EU) in 2016. The group was launched in April 2018 at which four Members of Pa ...
and Open Britain. Almost all the directors resigned. As the lead organisation behind the People's Vote campaign, this led to a
major staff walk out in protest at Roland Rudd's, the Chairperson's, actions.
Stop the Rot
In 2022 Open Britain began a campaign called 'Stop The Rot' promising "Enough is Enough - Johnson Must Go Join the #StopTheRot Summer of Action".. The campaign to remove
Boris Johnson
Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson (; born 19 June 1964) is a British politician, writer and journalist who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party from 2019 to 2022. He previously served as F ...
was backed by 'Fairvote UK' and 'Let's Take Back Control Ltd' run by campaigner Kyle Gregory Taylor a former candidate for the
Advance Together party in the 2019 general election.
Further reading
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References
External links
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2016 establishments in England
2016 establishments in the United Kingdom
2016 United Kingdom European Union membership referendum
Brexit–related advocacy groups in the United Kingdom
Consequences of the 2016 United Kingdom European Union membership referendum
European Union–related advocacy groups in the United Kingdom
International liberal organizations
Lobbying organisations in the United Kingdom
Organisations based in the City of Westminster
Political advocacy groups in the United Kingdom
Political organisations based in London
Pro-Europeanism in the United Kingdom
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