This review argues that *The Brexit Effect, 2016-2026*, a large essay collection edited by Anthony Seldon, offers an important establishment verdict on Brexit but fails to confront one of the reviewer’s central explanations for it: English nationalism. That omission matters, the review says, because it leaves the book unable to explain both why Brexit happened in the first place and why Nigel Farage remains politically influential even as many Leave voters now see Brexit as a failure.

The reviewer says the collection contains 43 contributors and runs to 600 pages, yet mentions “English nationalism” only once and has no dedicated essays on England or Farage. Citing Peter Kellner, the piece notes that a third of Leave voters now think Brexit has failed, while a quarter of those people say Farage is very responsible for that disappointment. It also points to a Stanford study estimating that by 2025 Brexit had reduced UK GDP by 6% to 8%, cut investment by 12% to 18%, and lowered employment and productivity by 3% to 4%, while immigration rose to record levels after Brexit despite promises of tighter control.