Europe, in or out?
When I was working at the BBC before the referendum one of the things that UKIP tried to correct us on was the use of the word Europe. Every time someone used Europe as a synonym for the EU the phone would ring, and the refrain would start: “We are still in Europe and will remain in Europe after Brexit, the EU is not Europe, we like Europe it is the EU we hate…….etc etc.”
To be fair they were right but recently I have noticed that the language has changed, now I hear reporters saying “we are negotiating with Europe, have left Europe and may or may not get a trade deal with Europe.” This is equally wrong and should be resisted and complained about; the UK can’t leave Europe unless we tow it round Ireland and across half the Atlantic.
Language matters because it helps set the tone and the agenda of the debate and hence government policies.
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