London: With tails wagging and raucous barking, hundreds of dogs and their owners rallied in London on Sunday to howl for a new people’s vote on Brexit, in what organisers dubbed a “wooferendum march”. The gathering drew EU-flag waving politicians, actors and activists — all accompanied by their four-legged friends and united in their opposition to Britain’s departure from the EU.
“In a campaign, use whatever you can that helps,” Alastair Campbell, a former Labour government spokesman, told AFP alongside his five-month-old Cavalier King Charles Spaniel, Skye. “Today’s showing that this country just isn’t uniting around any vision for Brexit and it’s one way of fighting,” he said.
The dog parade — which attracted everything from Corgies and beagles to huskies and a giant Leonberger — took place two weeks before a larger pro-referendum rally, set to be attended mostly by humans, planned for October 20. British Prime Minister Theresa May has ruled out a new Brexit referendum, saying it would betray the result of the 2016 vote and destroy trust in politicians. But politicians from all parties have joined a growing movement for Britons to have the chance to say whether they have changed their minds.
“It’s nice to highlight a serious point in such a fun way — everybody loves dogs,” said German university lecturer Flora Renz, 30. She has lived in Britain for a decade and turned out with Billy, a three-year-old beagle draped in an EU flag. “I hope people are going to see some sense. I don’t know if a second referendum is the best solution but anything’s better than what’s happening right now.” Human participants in the march, many sporting fancy dress and painted dog faces, assembled with furry companions displaying pro-EU signs on collars and backs, near Trafalgar Square.