Pro-Brexit forces didn't seem interested in self-interest

The people who would be hurt the most by their country getting out of EU lived in regions where support for the idea seemed to be greatest. That’s why the think tank Centre for European Reform called the vote "Brexiting yourself in the foot", the provocative title of an analysis published just before the vote. In some ways it was surprising to read in this short paper that it wasn’t the thriving regional economy of Greater London that was most at risk if the country unhooked itself from the EU, even though support for staying in the EU was strong in London.

London’s regional economy is simply more diversified and resilient, the think tank said, with trade that’s far more global than in other parts of the country and with services making up a bigger slice of the economy. It was the regions outside London, which depend more on jobs in manufacturing, agriculture and utilities, that had the most to lose from cutting loose from the EU.