BBC struggle to find Rotherham Europhiles for show as steelworks praises ‘Brexit boost’

BBC economics editor Kamal Ahmed arrived in Rotherham, where his mother was born, to see if locals had turned against Brexit and changed their minds “after a year of turmoil”.

But all of the leave voters in Rotherham interviewed by the programme stood firmly by their decision to leave the European superstate.

Vince Middleton, chairman of high-tech steelworks Newburgh Precision praised the “boost” his business had experienced since Brexit – despite fear-mongering during the referendum that business would take a dive following a vote to leave.

He said: “Certainly since the referendum our orders have increased, our confidence has increased, our recruitment has increased.

BBC

All of the leave voters in Rotherham interviewed by the programme stood firmly by their decision

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“So from our personal point of view we’ve seen a boost”.

But Mr Middleton, who expressed his confidence in British industry to thrive outside of the bloc, put less faith in Parliament to deliver the best deal for Britain.

He added: “The confidence in the political arena to deliver a good deal is very low, both within the EU and within the UK I think”.

Presenter Kamal Ahmed then went to a local social club “to see if people had changed their minds”.

BBC

Mr Ahmed then went to a local social club ‘to see if people had changed their minds’

But again he was met by optimistic leavers, ready to embrace whatever it took to cut ties with the EU.

One said: “What we voted for – to me that’s final. If there are people what lost that vote – tough.”

Another added: “Immigration was an issue for me. You know we’ve got 375,000 people from the world and Europe coming into Great Britain, the size of Birmingham.

“Where are they going to live? Where are they going to go to school? Where are they going to work?

BBC

Mr Middleton raised the ‘boost’ his business had experienced since Brexit

“You can’t have that volume coming in without making plans for them which we never did.”

A third concluded: “I would be more than willing for our country to stand on its feet again.

“If we’re going to go into a depression, fine.

“We’ll do it for now but we will rise again, and that’s what I believe.”