When you’re in a nightclub and the bouncer asks you to leave, there is no confusion as to what they mean – and you also don’t get to haggle over whether you get to stay in the smoking area. You just leave. Well, in my analogy the nightclub is the EU, the public are the bouncer and the Government are the patron. And in 2016 the Government of the United Kingdom was told in no uncertain terms that the majority of the public wanted to leave the European Union. There was not an option on the ballot paper saying ‘Leave but only with a deal’ or ‘Leave but have another vote’. It was a binary choice. Leave or Remain. In 2016, I chose Remain, although I was never a die-hard Remainer. I thought long and hard about which way to go and eventually after weighing all the arguments I decided that the Leave campaigns had failed to make their case for change and as such I voted for the option which at the time seemed more certain as to its consequences. As the results unfolded on the night of the referendum, I watched (and drank) as the results came flooding in. I did the maths in my head. I knew ‘my side’ had lost and this, ironically enough, was the moment that I became a Brexiteer. Why? Because I’m a democrat and I believe that my opinion is not more important than anybody else’s. We had a vote. We saw two sides set out their stalls. One side lost and there is a duty afterwards to ensure that those who won that vote get what they voted for – or at the very least to accept it with some grace and humility and not actively stand in the way. Instead those at the top of the Remain campaign immediately began plotting to reverse the decision because they didn’t like the result. They called those that voted for Leave stupid, they told us people didn’t know what they were voting for and that maybe our politicians needed to interpret the result… If I recall correctly, similar arguments were once used to disenfranchise women, working-class people and, in some countries, those from ethnic minorities. So for me, ensuring that Brexit happens is not only about Brexit. It’s about democracy and the right of people like myself to make a meaningful impact on the future of our nation. And as an experienced campaign manager, I decided to take an active role in the campaign to ensure the people’s will is realised. Why? Because that’s what you do in a democracy.