Greek and UK Referendums Have Important Parallels

"Only 9 per cent of Leavers would mind if a relative married a strong Remainer. But 37 per cent of Remainers would mind if a relative married a strong Leaver."

In both referendums, the vote was a very personal thing. In Britain, your friend's or relative's choice might threaten your status in the country. In Greece, it could decide whether you could access your savings account.

The matter of who the other guests at a dinner party might be was suddenly acquiring a whole new significance.

Britain and Greece could hardly be more different. The UK has a strong, vigorous economy and its own currency, outside the Schengen Area. It has contributed generously to the EU budget. It also plays a major role in European security.

Its political institutions boast a history of admirable continuity over several centuries, and its political system stands to the right of Europe, with a strong liberal tradition and no historical connection with Communism.

Greece is a bankrupt state. Its membership of the common currency and the elimination of borders with European countries are directly linked to its security.

Its political institutions are historically young, and were sorely tried until a few years, before it joined the then European Economic Community.

In recent years, a neo-Nazi party, Golden Dawn, has consistently polled third in elections. It is the only country in the European Union governed by a coalition of the radical left with [another] far-right group.

It is precisely because the differences between the two countries are so marked that the similarities between Brexit and Grexit are fascinating.

Greece's 2015 bailout referendum has resurfaced in Britain's public discourse as a case study for a second EU referendum.

...