Grassroots Briefing: 

Building the Pro-European 

Alliance 
It starts with you 
This briefing for pro-European campaigners is intended to supplement Best for Britain’s 
Grassroots guide to building the Pro-European Alliance​. It should help local campaigners to 
effectively take part in and drive the formation of Alliances from the ground up.  

Does South West England need 

Alliances? 
No Deal Brexit must be stopped. Government analysis shows the South West’s no-deal economy 
could be up to 5% smaller in the long term. 1 

Aerospace:  
The South West has 22.5% of UK aerospace jobs, and almost €50 billion in EU Research and 
Development grants between 2007 and 2013.2 3Industries in the South West rely on complex 
supply chains that cross the EU. Imposing tariffs would jeopardise industries in the ‘aerospace 
cluster’. Industry worth more than £7 billion, supporting up to 98,000 jobs in the wider economy. 
Imposing tariffs on UK exports may trigger the relocation of the cluster to the continent to avoid 
tariffs.  

Swindon and Bristol:  

Swindon and Bristol are two of England’s most negatively impacted cities in a no-deal Brexit 
(ranking 4th and 8th).4 New tariffs on clothing items could result in companies moving warehouses 
to Europe, and a loss of more jobs.  

Agriculture:  
64 thousand people are employed in the South West’s agriculture sector with farm businesses 
turning over £2.7bn - more than any other region in England.5 The NFU warns no-deal could trigger 

1
​EU Exit Analysis Cross Whitehall Briefing​ pg 23 
2
​Aerospace Sector Report​ pg 12 
3
​The aerospace industry: statistics and policy​ pg 5  
4
​South West ‘could suffer more than other regions’ after Brexit 
5
​Agriculture, Animal Health, and Food and Drink Manufacturing (including Catering, Retail and Wholesale) 
Sector Report​ pg 13 table 3, pg 2 

Printed and promoted by Best for Britain, the campaign name of UK-EU OPEN POLICY LIMITED registered at 
International House, 24 Holborn Viaduct, London, EC1A 2BN. Best for Britain is registered with The Electoral 
Commission. 
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 Best for Britain - Grassroots groups Pro-EU Alliance briefing note 

 
a trade embargo on UK exports of animal products into the EU, increased tariffs on 60% of UK 
food, feed and drink going to the EU, a shortage of labour in the farming and veterinary 
inspections sectors, as well as limited availability of veterinary medicines, fertilisers, machinery 
parts, and animal feed.6 

   

6
​NFU - No-deal Brexit 'catastrophic' for British farming 

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 Best for Britain - Grassroots groups Pro-EU Alliance briefing note 

How do we know an Alliance will work? 

 

Left:​ The chart shows 

the difference a Pro-EU 
Alliance would make in 
the South West in a 
general election.  

If the Pro-EU parties fail 

to work together, we 
should expect to see 
just a handful of Pro-EU 
MPs elected. 

However, as can be seen 

in this chart, a Pro-EU Alliance could make all the difference. General election seat share for 
Pro-EU parties in the region would be doubled and could make the key difference in the balance of 
power in Parliament between pro-Remain and pro-Brexit parties.  

Are voters in the South West ready for a Pro-EU Alliance? 

Best for Britain’s ‘Brexit Shift’ report from December 20187 found 5.9% more voters in the South 
East would vote remain, as would 6.5% of voters in the South West, showing there is a significant 
movement towards backing the UK’s membership of the EU. That movement has continued since 
the polling in December. 

The same report also found that Thangam Debbonaire’s seat of Bristol West was then the most 
remain seat in Great Britain, with 84.7% of voters backing remaining in the European Union. 

   

7
Brexit Shift 2.0, published by Best for Britain and Hope not hate, December 2018, 
https://www.bestforbritain.org/brexit-shift-2 

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 Best for Britain - Grassroots groups Pro-EU Alliance briefing note 

Who needs an Alliance? 

● Over 1.9 million switchers:​ ​Since the referendum, UK public opinion has shifted towards 
remaining in the EU, with over 10% of 2016 Leave voters now backing Remain as of 
November 2018. 
● Almost a fifth of UK voters are ‘persuadable’:​ ​Our data shows that 17% of UK voters can 
change their minds on Brexit, with 7% being soft Leavers that could potentially move 
towards Remain.  

So who are the switchers?  

In the South West, the biggest group of switchers from Leave to Remain are young voters 
(especially young women) that either supported Labour in 2015 or have switched from supporting 
the Conservatives in 2015 to Labour or other parties in 2017.  

Young (18-34) women who supported the Conservatives in 2015 are the demographic most likely 
to have switched, with over 20% of those who voted Leave now in favour of staying in.  

● For those young female Leavers that voted Conservative in 2015 but did not support the 
Tories in 2017, the number is 25%.  
● The trend is largely the same among young people that voted for Labour in 2015: 20% of 
Leave supporters in this demographic have switched to Remain.  

Young people, women, and disillusioned Conservative voters will continue to shift towards 
Remain as the consequences of a no deal Brexit become ever more apparent. 

What can you do? 

You have a voice. You represent a body of opinion in your area and on that basis alone you 
have a platform. But more than that, you represent an organised group with a supporter 
base and volunteers separate from the local political parties. That’s no small thing. 

Use your platform and the assets you have been building up over the past three years -  

● Use your status as a community leader to meet local party representatives in person 
● Use your platform to convene negotiations as a party-political ‘neutral’ participant  
● Use your group’s organisation as proof you can provide support and volunteers for the 
Alliance candidate 
● Use your supporters and volunteers to lobby local politicians 
● Use your social media to highlight the need for an Alliance and the support for it 
● Use local spokespeople to write to local papers and promote the Alliance 

Every area has different politics, history and local character. There is no one-size-fits-all answer. 
That’s why you, as a local campaigner, are best placed to make this happen. ​Good luck! 

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