MEMBERS of the Andover branch of the Women’s Equality Party (WEP) and North Hampshire for Europe (NH4EU) joined thousands of protesters in London calling for a People’s Vote.

As parliament sat on Saturday for the first time Falklands conflict, members of the two Basingstoke groups joined the march as the debate over Boris Johnson’s Brexit deal continued in the House of Commons.

At a recent joint meting between the two held last week, they heard how 80 per cent of the reduction in government spending between 2010 and 2017 fell on women, whether as workers, consumers or carers.

Dr Monica Horten, a prominent member of Grassroots for Europe, told the meeting that the economic implications of the hard Brexit now being proposed will impact women in many ways. For example, shortages or price rises for essential products such as feminine hygiene or family medicines will be felt most by those in already economically precarious roles.

Jonathan Buisson, Chair, NH4EU, said: “The Prime Minister’s proposals are clearly the worst of all worlds, splitting the UK and committing to basic trading arrangements that will see our fragile economy decline further throughout the 2020s. And, of course, our local MPs dutifully voted for it, disregarding their constituents and the wider national interest. It is high time that the public had its say. If the Government is so sure that this is what people still want, then it will not be afraid. The reluctance to do so speaks volumes.”