Morality of Victors and Vanquished

Published: June 30, 2016, 12:57 p.m.

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Pundits and politicians alike are struggling to capture the enormity of the consequences of the result of the referendum vote. It\'s at times like these people often turn to George Orwell for inspiration. He likened our nation to "a family with the wrong members in control" - "that" he said "perhaps, is as near as one can come to describing England in a phrase." Who\'ll be left standing and in charge after all the political recriminations and bloodletting have ended is still not clear. It\'s been described as the worst peace-time constitutional crisis this country has faced. So this week on the Moral Maze we\'re asking what should now be the moral priority for the victors and the vanquished? Has the democratic will of the people been clearly expressed so that the victors must now deliver Brexit at any price? Is it the moral duty of those who championed Brexit to deliver on all their promises made during the campaigning? Or, once normal politics has resumed, should the utilitarian principle of cutting the best possible deal triumph - even if that means forgetting campaign promises on immigration and the single market? Should the vanquished now support Brexit and work towards it with all the enthusiasm they can manage? Or was this a mistake by the British people that means they have a moral duty to go on fighting to keep Britain in the EU and campaign for a second referendum? Or should the priority, above all others, be to find a way to heal a divided nation?

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