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Britain Means Business

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Britain Means Business
Formation1 August 2017 (2017-08-01)
FoundersRichard Tice, John Longworth
PurposeUnited Kingdom withdrawal from the European Union
Headquarters24 Berkeley Square, London
Region served
United Kingdom
Key people
Websiteleavemeansleave.eu
Formerly called
Leave Means Leave (1 August 2017-28 May 2020)

Britain Means Business, formerly called Leave Means Leave, is a pro-Brexit,[4] Eurosceptic political pressure group organisation that campaigned and lobbied[5] for the United Kingdom to leave the European Union following the 'Leave' result of the EU referendum on 23 June 2016. The campaign was co-chaired by British property entrepreneur Richard Tice and business consultant John Longworth. The vice-chairman was leader of the Brexit Party, Nigel Farage.

The organisation has described itself as a "campaign for a clean Brexit".

History

[edit]

Co-founded by Richard Tice and John Longworth, according to the BBC, the organisation grew out of the Vote Leave campaign during the 2016 EU referendum.[6]

As of June 2020, following the withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the European Union, the home page of the group's website declared that it had "achieved its aims when we left the EU on 31st January 2020".[7] The website was subsequently deactivated.

Letter to the prime minister

[edit]

On 30 September 2017, during the Brexit negotiations, the campaign wrote a letter to Prime Minister Theresa May.[8] Four ex-cabinet members, including former Chancellor of the Exchequer Nigel Lawson, as well as former Brexit minister David Jones,[9] signed the letter alongside the rest of the board.[10] The letter highlighted concerns including support for considering a no-deal scenario.[11][12]

The letter had multiple significant supporters outside of the organisation, including former Conservative leader Michael Howard, who said he shared its "aspirations".[13]

March to Leave

[edit]

Nigel Farage and the Leave Means Leave campaign organised a march in 2019, setting off from Sunderland in the north east of England on 16 March and culminating in a rally in Parliament Square, London on 29 March, the date Brexit was originally due to occur.[14][15][16][17]

The march set off from Sunderland on Saturday 16 March 2019 with roughly 100 marchers heading to Hartlepool led by Farage.[18] Supporters of Leave Means Leave had been asked to pay £50 to sponsor or to join the march from Sunderland to London and it had been claimed that more than 350 people had signed up although only 50 had agreed to walk for the full 14 days.[19] The marchers did not plan to walk the whole route.[19]

At the start of the march, Nigel Farage was quoted as saying: "We are here in the very week when parliament is doing its utmost to betray the Brexit result ... It is beginning to look like it doesn’t want to leave and the message from this march is if you think you can walk all over us we will march straight back to you.”[20]

The following day roughly 150 marchers headed to Middlesbrough but Farage did not participate.[21] Farage rejoined the march the following Saturday in Nottinghamshire attended by roughly 200 marchers,[22] drawing unfavourable comparisons to the hundreds of thousands attending the anti-Brexit People's Vote March in London on the same day.[23][24]

The March for Leave then proceeded through Leicestershire and Buckinghamshire with its numbers reduced to around 100.[25][26]

The march was accompanied throughout by an advertising truck displaying anti-Brexit messages paid for by the Led By Donkeys campaign.[27][28]

On 29 March, the march arrived in Central London, to join the Leave Means Leave rally in Parliament Square.[29] The rally was reported to have attracted "thousands" of supporters.[30][31] The Financial Times quoted their reporter Sebastian Payne as stating that the crowd size was "a couple of thousand".[32] Speakers included Brexit Party chairman, Richard Tice, businessman John Longworth, broadcaster Julia Hartley-Brewer, Spiked editor Brendan O'Neill, Labour MP Kate Hoey, Wetherspoons founder Tim Martin, writer Claire Fox, Conservative MPs Peter Bone and Mark Francois and DUP MP Ian Paisley Jr.[33]

A separate pro-Brexit "Make Brexit Happen" rally, organised by the UKIP party formerly led by Farage, was also held nearby.[34]

Post-Brexit activity

[edit]

Longworth resigned as a director in early 2020 and Richard Tice then changed the name of the organization to Britain Means Business on 28 May 2020.[35][36] The company has made donations to Reform UK,[36] Donations made to Britain Means Business by Fiona Cottrell (mother of George Cottrell) in June 2024 were referred to the National Crime Agency on suspicion of money laundering.[37][38] Tice said that he was not aware that it was being investigated and that Fiona Cottrell is a permissible donor.[39] Tice subsequently wrote to Graeme Biggar, the director general of the National Crime Agency, urging him to investigate whether the body is responsible for leaking his financial information to the media. Tice said: "This appears to be a deliberate tactic to smear and discredit me. I have nothing to hide."[38]

References

[edit]
  1. ↑ "Goldman Ceo Blankfein calls for second vote on Brexit". Reuters. 16 November 2017.
  2. ↑ "Helene von Bismarck: War metaphors have no place in the Brexit debate". The Times. 13 November 2017.
  3. ↑ "Gove and Johnson congratulate May on Brexit deal". The Guardian. 8 December 2017.
  4. ↑ "Iain Duncan Smith backs report calling for 'drastic reduction' in immigration". Metro. 26 November 2017.
  5. ↑ "Ireland seeks momentum on border ahead of key Brexit meeting". Associated Press. 3 December 2017. Archived from the original on 15 December 2017. Retrieved 14 December 2017.
  6. ↑ "Donald Tusk: EU's 'heart still open to UK' over Brexit". BBC News. 16 January 2018.
  7. ↑ "Leave Means Leave". 23 June 2020. Archived from the original on 23 June 2020. Retrieved 2 July 2023.
  8. ↑ "Leave Means Leave letter to Prime Minister". Leave Means Leave. 30 September 2017.
  9. ↑ "Tory Conference: Brexiteers demand Theresa May quit EU talks if Brussels says no to trade negotiations". The Independent. 30 September 2017.
  10. ↑ "Theresa May urged to prepare for no-deal Brexit by former Conservative ministers as EU talks stall". The Independent. 19 October 2017.
  11. ↑ "Pro-Brexit MPs urge Theresa May to quit talks". BBC News. 19 October 2017.
  12. ↑ "Increased pressure on Theresa May over Brexit negotiations". The Yorkshire Post. 30 September 2017.
  13. ↑ "No Brexit unless we back Theresa May, Jeremy Hunt says". BBC News. 3 December 2017.
  14. ↑ "Brexit 'Leave Means Leave' march sets off". BBC News. 16 March 2019. Retrieved 24 March 2019.
  15. ↑ Gayle, Damien (16 March 2019). "Chaotic scenes as Nigel Farage's Brexit march sets off for London". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 28 March 2019.
  16. ↑ Addley, Esther (29 March 2019). "'Fighting for freedom': inside the leave protest on what would have been Brexit day". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 11 December 2019.
  17. ↑ Halliday, Josh (17 March 2019). "March for Leave protesters descend on Middlesbrough – without Farage". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 28 March 2019.
  18. ↑ AP, Source (16 March 2019). "Nigel Farage and Leave Means Leave march set off from Sunderland - video". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 28 March 2019.
  19. 1 2 Tubb, Gerard (18 March 2019). "Nigel Farage will not complete Brexit Betrayal march despite urging supporters to join him". Sky News. Retrieved 4 April 2019.
  20. ↑ Heppell, Scott (16 March 2019). "Arch-eurosceptic Farage leads march over Brexit betrayal". Reuters. Archived from the original on 17 March 2019. Retrieved 28 March 2019.
  21. ↑ Halliday, Josh (17 March 2019). "March for Leave protesters descend on Middlesbrough – without Farage". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 28 March 2019.
  22. ↑ "Nigel Farage says Brexit delay is 'an outright betrayal' as he rejoins Leave protest march". ITV News. 23 March 2019. Retrieved 28 March 2019.
  23. ↑ "Nigel Farage's walk to Brexit vs People's Vote march". Metro. 23 March 2019. Retrieved 1 April 2019.
  24. ↑ "There almost certainly weren't a million people on the People's Vote march". Full Fact. 25 March 2019. Retrieved 28 March 2019.
  25. ↑ Martin, Dan; Troughton, Adrian; Harrison, Dave (27 March 2019). "Live updates: Brexit protest continues through Leicestershire". leicestermercury. Retrieved 28 March 2019.
  26. ↑ "Please be aware of the March to Leave happening". @tfbalerts. Transport for Bucks. 28 March 2019. Retrieved 28 March 2019.
  27. ↑ Martin, Dan (24 March 2019). "Updates: March to Leave Brexit protest hits Leicestershire". leicestermercury. Retrieved 24 March 2019.
  28. ↑ Jones, Stephen (18 March 2019). "Farage targeted with 'where's Nigel' signs on anti-Brexit march". The Independent. Retrieved 28 March 2019.
  29. ↑ Gayle, Damien (16 March 2019). "Chaotic scenes as Nigel Farage's Brexit march sets off for London". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 28 March 2019.
  30. ↑ "MPs abused in street as thousands join Nigel Farage and Tommy Robinson rallies". The Independent. 29 March 2019. Retrieved 30 March 2019.
  31. ↑ "Brexit supporters hold Parliament protests". 29 March 2019. Retrieved 30 March 2019.
  32. ↑ Odell, Mark (29 March 2019). "Leave march arrives outside Parliament". Financial Times. Retrieved 1 April 2019.
  33. ↑ "Brexit supporters hold Parliament protests". 29 March 2019. Retrieved 11 December 2019.
  34. ↑ "Brexit supporters hold Parliament protests". BBC News. 29 March 2019. Retrieved 1 April 2019.
  35. ↑ "BRITAIN MEANS BUSINESS LTD overview - Find and update company information - GOV.UK". find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk. Retrieved 11 July 2026.
  36. 1 2 Uddin, Rafe; McCrum, Dan (2 July 2024). "Reform UK bailed out by cross-party group run by Richard Tice in 2020". Financial Times.
  37. ↑ "Reform asks NCA to investigate leaks of private financial information". BBC News. 7 July 2026. Retrieved 8 July 2026.
  38. 1 2 Rayner, Gordon (7 July 2026). "Reform accuses National Crime Agency of leaking bank statements". The Telegraph.
  39. ↑ Dodd, Vikram; Isaac, Anna (10 July 2026). "George and Fiona Cottrell understood to have been interviewed under caution by Met police". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 10 July 2026.
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