Mike Hosking: Britain needs to hold firm - it needs Brexit

Opinion

OPINION

Theresa May might turn out to be one of the giants of modern politics. I doubt it, she's more likely to end up toast, but she might.

The job she faces is gargantuan, it seems insurmountable. No-one seems to think she has the numbers in the parliament, and the fact she has got this far is little short of a miracle.

Of course she's made a hash of it. The only way to deal with people who don't want to deal with you is to play tough, play hard, lay down the rules, walk away or, as Trump advised her, call in the lawyers.

Europe never wanted it, and therefore was never going to be interested in playing nice, or even honestly. They set out to sabotage it out of self-interest, and they never had any intention of respecting the views of the British public.

And that of, course, was the other problem. The British public really didn't take the vote seriously. It was a protest vote, the way so many votes are. Potential fall-out and detail was never thought through.

Having been there the day after the vote, there was a palpable sense of a hangover after a hard night out ... and a bleary eyed sort of wonderment at what the hell they had got up to in the wee small hours.

So it's been no surprise to see the calls for another vote, and that's a lesson in taking democracy seriously. That's not to confuse the calls for another go with the execution of the original task. Voting to leave was the right thing to do, but that is separate to what's unfolded. You can have a great idea, but butcher the execution.

And that sadly is what May has been in charge of - a mangled example of something that could have been brilliant. So if this thing now falls apart, which is most likely, she's out, an election is called, and most likely Labour will win.

And that is going to be a sight all and sundry will regret. Which then is more than a lesson in democracy.

It's a lesson in history, because the history is David Cameron. Remember him? He promised the vote, never thinking anyone would go for it, and when they did that was his career shot to bits.

David Cameron. Photo / AP

That left May to flail around for the past two years.

But here's the good news.

It's a country that is 1000 years old. Britons have seen greater turmoil than this. Ultimately Brexit will be good for Britain and the world - they just need to hold firm.