UK (Parliament Politics Magazine) – Marina Wheeler, ex-wife of Boris Johnson, calls for Britain to repair Brexit and rebuild EU ties, pushing for a bolder approach than Labour’s reset.
As reported by The Telegraph, Marina Wheeler, Boris Johnson’s ex-wife, has called on the UK to fix the flaws in his Brexit deal and restore stronger ties with the EU.
What did Marina Wheeler identify as Britain’s Brexit errors?
Human rights barrister Marina Wheeler KC is preparing a new book advocating for stronger ties between Britain and Brussels.
The book, revealed on Wednesday, insists on a more radical approach than Sir Keir Starmer’s “reset” and stresses that Europe remains central to Britain’s future.
Her book, scheduled for release in October, argues that Britain should “build a union” once again with the European Union.
The book, titled A More Perfect Union: The Europe We Need, has been acquired by Weidenfeld & Nicolson.
Ms Wheeler stated,
“Nearly 10 years after Britain voted to leave the EU, the unstable state of the world is clear to us all.”
She said,
“Less obvious is the extraordinary opportunity this presents to put right what went wrong before and build a Europe we can together defend.”
According to 1 Crown Office Row, Ms Wheeler is a distinguished human rights barrister who took silk in 2016, specialising in detention, mental health, and national security law.
What did the publisher say about Brexit and Britain-EU ties?
According to her publisher, the Brexit deal struck by her ex-husband resembled a marital separation, stating,
“Like a court order in a divorce, the Brexit deal contains our bare legal obligations.”
They added,
“Yet as dangerous forces gather and global technologies stoke animosity, we have a wider duty. If Britain and Europe can’t work together, what chance do democracy and the rule of law have?”
What did Marina Wheeler’s book blurb say about Labour’s reset’?
The blurb of her latest book states,
“Labour aims for a ‘reset’. Barrister and mediator Marina Wheeler proposes something more radical: a roadmap towards a meaningful rapprochement.”
It added,
“In A More Perfect Union, she tackles the political anxieties and identity crises on both sides of the Channel, and makes the case that transforming this relationship is now critical if our fundamental political liberties are to survive another generation. Concise, forensic, devastating, it is essential reading no matter which side you were on.”
Marina Wheeler’s divorce, illness, and book
Marina Wheeler and Boris Johnson were married from 1993 to 2018 and have four children.
In early 2020, they settled their divorce, shortly before Mr Johnson’s third marriage to Carrie Symonds, his Downing Street flatmate.
She announced in 2021 that her marriage with Mr Johnson had ended, stating,
“My 25-year marriage had become impossible, so I ended it, but the whole business was grim.”
Ms Wheeler was diagnosed with cervical cancer in early 2019 amid separation proceedings and has since made a full recovery.
Her latest book follows The Lost Homestead, detailing her Sikh mother’s life during the 1947 partition.
Boris Johnson’s political career and key policies
- Brexit Leadership: Led the UK’s exit from the EU in 2020 after years of deadlock, fulfilling his 2019 election slogan “Get Brexit Done”
- Electoral Victory: Won the 2019 general election with an 80-seat majority, the largest Conservative majority since 1987
- COVID-19 Response: Oversaw the UK’s pandemic response, including the rapid rollout of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine (fastest in Europe) but faced criticism for lockdown-breaking “Partygate” scandals
- Ukraine Support: Pledged £2.4 billion in military aid to Ukraine and became a vocal ally of President Zelenskyy
- Domestic Policies: Launched the “Levelling Up” agenda to reduce regional inequalities and reform infrastructure planning