MID-DEVON Advertiser work experience placement Kyle Tagg

ventured out on to the streets of Newton Abbot to assess the town’s post-Brexit reaction. Our young reporter was keen to find out how people felt in the wake of the shock exit from Europe…

WHETHER you were an in or an out voter, the result of the EU referendum is sure to affect everyone.

In the wake of the greatest political decision for a generation, there remains a deep chasm between the 52 per cent of leave voters and the remaining 48 per cent who opted to stay.

Some 82,377 Teignbridge people turned out to vote with 54 per cent voting out – slightly above the national average.

What are the public’s thoughts now the dust has settled? Is Britain really heading for a future of turmoil and instability? Many on the streets of Newton Abbot believe this might be the case.

Philip Darke, 57, said: ‘I think it’s daft. We should’ve stayed in.’

And he predicted: ‘There are going to be long-term problems. The EU will penalise us in some way.’

If Nigel Farage’s speech to the European Parliament was an example of our post-Brexit negotiations, Mr Darke may well have a point.

Farage is the latest big name to leap from the Brexit boat after Boris Johnson jumped ship.

Despite this, out-voters still remain confident they chose the right path.

One couple, who didn’t want to give their names, said: ‘It’s about time we left. The EU started as a trade deal but it turned into much more than that.

‘The youngsters only know the present. They don’t know what it was like before we joined.’

A fair point. When Britain joined the Common Market in 1973, a large proportion of today’s voters had yet to see the light of day. Zannah Lawrence, 24, was one.

‘I think it was the wrong thing to do,’ she said, adding: ‘The majority of out voters are old, yet it’s mainly our future they’re deciding.’

It is indeed younger people who will have to live longer with the consequences – good or bad.

With this in mind, another couple, again not wishing to have their names printed, raised an interesting question.

If the outcome of the referendum affects younger people so much, why did only 43 per cent of 18 to 24-year-olds turn out to vote?

Of the people I spoke to, covering both genders and a range of ages, the slight majority revealed they voted to leave, a margin tallying with the final voting figures.

Does leaving make the future uncertain? Of course it does. Are we doomed forever? I doubt it.

That said, before younger voters go pointing the finger at over 65s, we should take a look at the majority of 18 to 24-year-olds who didn’t make the effort.

Brexit is a subject which refuses to be ignored and it is bound to be a key factor in the Conservative leadership tussle.

The country has decided to venture into the unknown. Now we must wait and see who will lead us there.