The EU idea was good but it ‘got out of hand’; Canadians react to Brexit vote

Britain has voted to leave the European Union. Here are some reactions from Canadians with ties to Britain:

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Nicola Hastings, 26, Edinburgh, Scotland

Hastings, a dual citizen who has been living in Scotland for nine years since leaving Ontario for university, says she voted to remain in the EU. Given the results of the referendum, she will expedite her plan to return to Canada with her fiance.

“I’m feeling a little disillusioned here. We want to live in a country that isn’t afraid of immigration and with what the Canadian government is doing with Syrians, it seems like a good time to come home.”

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Heather McMillan, 29, London, England

McMillan, who works for a head-hunting company in London and is from Calgary, says she voted to remain in the EU. She is struggling with the results of the vote and fears the decision to withdraw from the EU will limit travel and employment opportunities and create divisions within the country that will be hard to mend.

“Nobody really thought it was going to happen. It has — and it’s scary.”

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Graeme Bennett, 38, St. Mary’s, Ont.

Bennett, a dual citizen who was born in Northern Ireland before coming to Canada in 2008, says he voted to leave the EU. He says the union has morphed in recent years into a political body rather than sticking to trade.

“More and more powers have been consolidated in Brussels rather than London. This is going to give the power back to the local politicians where it should be. I’m not against free trade. You don’t need to be in a political union to be able to trade with them. Canada isn’t in a political union with the United States or Mexico, but we’ve got free trade with them.”

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David Whitford, 72, Norwich, Ont.

Whitford, who came to Canada from England 49 years ago, says he would have voted to leave the EU had he been able to. He said six of his family members who live near London did that.

“The idea of the EU was very good, but it got out of hand. It became too political with somebody in Brussels telling everybody what to do.”

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Chris Pulicicchio, 32, Toronto

Pulicicchio is a dual citizen who was born in Canada and returned here a few years ago after spending more than a decade in England. He says he’s bewildered and disappointed by the vote to leave.

“Because of that EU citizenship, I’m able to work and travel freely, which made me a mobile asset and rocketed my career and I’m lucky to have had that really early on. It opened a lot of doors to me, but it feels like with the referendum now those doors may be closing.”

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Richard Holland, Grafton, Ont.

Holland, a British-Canadian, says his initial support for the “remain” camp shifted over the course of the campaign as he reflected on the future economic viability of the European Union. But he says he is concerned that the “leave” victory may start the disintegration of the United Kingdom.

“I’m not completely disappointed. I’m concerned about where Britain is going and what this means for Britain, but I do think it may kickstart some much-needed changes in the European Union, which really I think has become a little bit dysfunctional.”

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