Daniel Hannan – författare

Daniel Hannan, a British Conservative Member of the European Parliament, calls on Americans to avoid Europe's future. He traces the common roots of British and American liberty, and describes how both countries are losing their inheritance as government crowds out the private sphere. He calls for a renewed commitment to the Anglosphere: the alliance of free, English-speaking nations which has preserved freedom in our time.

This book tells the story of freedom and explains how it is a uniquely 'British', rather than 'Western', invention. It shows how the inhabitants of a damp island at the western tip of the Eurasian landmass stumbled upon the extraordinary idea that the state was the servant, and not the master, of the individual. This revolutionary concept created security of property and contract which, in turn, led to industrialization and modern capitalism. For the first time in the history of the species, a system grew up which, on the whole, rewarded production over predation. The system was carried across the oceans by English-speakers – sometimes colonial administrators, sometimes patriotic settlers – where in Philadelphia 1787, it was distilled into its purest and most sublime form as the US Constitution. Freedom is the key to the success of the English-speaking peoples and this book teaches us to keep fast to that legacy and, in our turn, to pass it intact to the next generation.

On 23 June 2016, against all forecasts, Britain voted to leave the EU. Drawing on his experiences at the heart of the campaign, Daniel Hannan dissects the result and our reaction. He outlines why Vote Leave won, exploring what people were voting for and what they weren’t. He looks at the immediate aftermath – how it differs from what people expected and what it says about where to go next. Brexit, Hannan points out, is a process – not an event – with three key areas of consideration: our relationship with the remaining 27 EU states; our relationship with the rest of the world; and, crucially, our consequent domestic reforms – there is no point to Brexit if we don’t now tackle the threats to democracy of corporatism and lobbying.What Next is Hannan’s blueprint for a successful Brexit. A Brexit that addresses the concerns of the 48 per cent who voted Remain as well as of the 52 per cent who voted Leave, a Brexit that revitalises British democracy, and a Brexit that will be mutually beneficial for both Britain and Europe.