Seven years on, the UK and EU are still drifting apart. The public wants a change | Timothy Garton Ash

Britain is like a sailing boat in the middle of the Channel, struggling for direction. It needs a bold new captain and a new crew

As we approach the seventh anniversary of Britain's fateful vote, on 23 June 2016, to leave the EU, the state of UK-EU relations is superficially encouraging and structurally depressing.

Britain is like a sailing boat faffing around in the middle of the Channel. Most of its passengers want it to steer closer to the continental coast and even the captain seems willing to make some modest adjustments to his course. But strong winds and currents are pushing the boat further away from the continent. It will require a much more decisive change of course from a new captain, after a different crew comes onboard next year, for the forces of convergence to prevail over those of divergence.