Poll shocks the Observer

Not at all like me to say I told you so, but the result of all the Remain delay-and-insult tactics, the Observer finds -- and they have been among the most treasonous clerks --  has been rejection and  disillusionment , at least according to an opinion poll (which I have not examined --it was 'conducted between 7 and 9 June and weighted to be representative of all UK adults by age, gender, region and socioeconomic grade [n=2000 plus 2 focus groups]'. Must have had small numbers in the actual cells underneath all that 'weighting'. Fans of Habermas would see this as a classic legitimation crisis as governments fail to solve economic crisis even though they claim to be able to do so. I think the EU faces the same sort of escalation of delegitimation.

Divided, pessimistic, angry: survey reveals bleak mood of pre-Brexit UK 

The survey by BritainThinks reveals an astonishing lack of faith in the political system among the British people, with less than 6% believing their politicians understand them. Some 75% say that UK politics is not fit for purpose...86% think the UK needs a strong leader more than ever – but only 21% think the next prime minister, whoever it may be, will be up to the job. Some 52% believe the country is heading for a Boris Johnson premiership....Almost three-quarters of the British public believe the divisions on Brexit between Leavers and Remainers will deepen and get worse within the next year. Two-thirds feel depressed by rising poverty and homelessness....

[The Pollster ] cannot recall a time when the national mood was more despairing. ‘Broken’, ‘sad’, worried’, ‘angry’– the negatives tumble out, as does the long list of grievances. I’m hearing anxieties voiced in a way that I haven’t heard since the 1990s: a rundown NHS, job insecurity, teacher shortages.”

 the polling suggests the bitter political debate over leaving the EU has shattered public trust in the way the nation is governed....The poll found an extraordinary gulf in levels of optimism between the generations: while 52% of those aged over 65 said they felt optimistic about the country’s future, this dropped to just 24% of under-34s....Class was a clear dividing line; 72% of those from AB social grades felt positive about their personal lives compared with 57% of those from DE households. Similarly, only 54% of those in social grade DE are optimistic about their physical health, compared with 71% of ABs.

It is a mixture of worries about Brexit and a perception of the terrible effects of austerity . The findings are still ambiguous though -- eg 'the BritainThinks poll found only 58% believe the UK will still leave the EU.'. So they must be worrying about the effects of staying in the EU? Or see membership as irrelevant or ineffective compared to austerity? More support for this is in the finding that:

green shoots of optimism could be found in an underlying stoicism: two-thirds of those polled felt positive about their homes, relationships and mental health and that “British people will just get on with things regardless of the impact of Brexit”.

And:

“The people we elected think we’re too stupid to understand what’s going on, there’s condescension and no respect for us,” said one Remain voter from Leicester, who now believed that the only way to uphold any sense of national pride would be to leave Europe. “The British took democracy to other countries, but we can’t even abide by it or believe in it ourselves,” he said.

So Operation Fear and KitKat deals have not worked, and those trying to manipulate us have lost credibility and legitimacy. I don't suppose headlines like the one below will have helped convince anyone of the sincerity of the Remain 'Independents':

Chuka Umunna gets Lib Dem Treasury role days after joining party