Juncker regrets EU silence on Brexit campaign 'lies'

[Ghost Dog]

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Jean-Claude Juncker thinks heeding David Cameron’s request to stay silent while Brexit campaigners told “lies” before Britain’s 2016 referendum was the biggest mistake he has made as EU chief executive...

... “It was a mistake not to intervene and not to interfere because we would have been the only ones to destroy the lies which were circulated around. I was wrong to be silent at an important moment.”

Cameron angered fellow EU leaders by promising a referendum on Britain’s membership of the bloc in a bid to prevent voters deserting his ruling Conservatives for the UK Independence Party. Having secured some special concessions from the EU, he then campaigned to keep Britain in the EU in the June 2016 vote.

Juncker has said that he kept out of that British debate, partly because Cameron told him it would be counter-productive. Many EU leaders were irritated, however, that Cameron’s campaign made little mention of the special deal they had given him...

https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-britain-eu-juncker-mistake/juncker-regrets-eu-silence-on-brexit-campaign-lies-idUKKCN1SD1B9?il=0

[Denzil_DC]

1. Given the fevered mood during the referendum and the number of myths/lies that abounded,

I'm not sure whether a more aggressive approach from anyone in the EU would have helped.

Boris Johnson had been driving his cart and horses around the pitch of truth where the EU was concerned for many years, and media in search of cheap clickbait headlines about the latest EU monstrosity/idiocy followed slavishly.

The EU did set up a website to debunk some of the most prevalent myths some years ago: https://blogs.ec.europa.eu/ECintheUK/euromyths-a-z-index/

But we're living in post-truth/post-expert times.

[abqtommy]

2. There is the very true

saying that hindsight is 20/20.

[Ghost Dog]

3. Yes. So now it is known that in any future such referenda,

and I would say in elections too, impartial and unimpeachable watchdogs, to expose lies, will be absolutely necessary if fair play is to be assured.