London: Former British Prime Minister David Cameron, who called a referendum over three years ago and then had to exit Downing Street in the aftermath of the June 2016 verdict in favour of Britain’s exit from the European Union (EU), Saturday said he was “truly sorry” for all the uncertainty and division that Brexit had caused.
In an interview ahead of the publication of his memoir “For the Record” next week, Cameron told The Times newspaper that the victory of the Leave camp in the referendum had left him “hugely depressed”.
“From the timing of the vote to the expectations I allowed to build about the renegotiation, there are many things I would do differently. I did not fully anticipate the strength of feeling that would be unleashed both during the referendum and afterwards, and I am truly sorry to have seen the country I love so much suffer uncertainty and division in the years since then,” said Cameron, whose memoirs are being serialised by the newspaper.
“But on the central question of whether it was right to renegotiate Britain’s relationship with the EU and give people the chance to have their say on it, my view remains that this was the right approach to take,” he noted.
Cameron also reveals that he continues to have robust exchanges over the issue with people on the streets.
Asked if Brexit has given him sleepless nights, he replies: “I worry about it a lot. Every single day I think about… the things that could have been done differently, and I worry about what is going to happen next.”
The former Conservative Party leader criticised the current incumbent in Downing Street, Boris Johnson, over his Brexit strategy and for sacking veteran Tory MPs for not voting with him over the issue in Parliament.
“Taking the whip from hard-working Conservative MPs and sharp practices using prorogation of Parliament have rebounded. I didn’t support either of those things. Neither do I think a no-deal Brexit is a good idea,” he said.
Cameron, who led high-profile trade delegations to India and was in charge when Narendra Modi made his first official UK visit as Prime Minister in 2015, is likely to have also touched upon the India-UK relationship in his memoir, which is out next Thursday.