The challenge for the optimists is to reunite the two Britains. They need to inspire and assuage the angry Remainers, showing all but the most die-hard that the future can be rosy; and they must reach out to those Leavers who feel that they haven’t benefited enough from globalisation.

All groups in society have a responsibility to take part in this project to rebuild Britain for a post-Brexit 21st century. Entrepreneurs and firms need to propose the reforms they believe are required to allow our economy to prosper outside of the EU: we need to hear solutions, not whining, from business. The same is true of other professionals, from university administrators to architects to the police forces, as well as from the charitable sector. Britain needs a “can‑do” revolution, with as many positive ideas as possible from all quarters and perspectives. The question is no longer whether or not to Brexit – it’s how to make it work as well as possible for the whole country.

The Government, for its part, needs to unveil a three-fold programme to woo the sceptics. The first pledge should be to turn Britain into the nation that is the most open to trade of any Western economy in five years’ time. To reach this target, the Government would seek to limit the reimposition of tariff or non-tariff barriers with the EU, while urgently pursuing as many free-trade deals as possible with faster-growing economies worldwide.

The second pledge should be to make the UK the most entrepreneur-friendly country in the West by 2020. This would include tearing up red tape, cutting tax, making it easy for tech firms to continue to hire skilled migrant talent, and encouraging universities to become incubators for start-ups.

Last but not least, the Government should make an explicit promise to Britain’s poorer groups and regions that their opportunities will drastically improve. The free school programme should be turbo-charged by allowing for-profit companies to open new ones, starting in the north of England and Wales before being rolled out nationally; new selective schools should be opened, as part of an extension of parent choice; much more land should be made available for building in the south of England; and expensive green energy rules should be ditched. Britain is also in desperate need of several low-tax, low-regulation new enterprise zones near universities in poor parts of the North and Wales, with a vision and management structure similar to London’s Canary Wharf.

David Fuller's view

Here is a PDF of Allister Heath's column.

Governance is Everything, as this service never tires of saying.  Britain is fortunate to have a Prime Minister as intelligent, experienced and increasingly respected as Theresa May.  There are also plenty of other successful leaders, some in Parliament and many more from all professions and backgrounds across the country.  Britain has a proud history of entrepreneurial spirit and will relish the independence that Brexit promises.   There is no external obstacle in the path of this country’s future success.