The intensity of racial politics around the 2016 referendum shocked those observers who had accepted the narrative of positive change in British society. Yet, while some forms of liberalization were real, overall the country was far from being “post-racial”, and many sources of continuing racism were embedded in social relations, institutions, beliefs and attitudes. However, the constant renewal of a tradition of political racism had also played a crucial role in perpetuating the general level of racism and blocking fuller liberalization. This tradition, originating in the nineteenth century, was revived in the context of non-white immigration in the second half of the twentieth, most notoriously through Powell's speeches in 1968. As we have seen, race is a “floating signifier”, and it tends to be constantly filled with new meanings, especially by political actors who need to adapt to changing circumstances and the challenges which these pose for the achievement of their goals. It was possible for Brexit to catalyse racist tendencies in society because political racism had been regularly reproduced by sections of the political right and the press, and fed by the immigration policies of both Labour and Conservative governments. Although this tradition was “Powellite” in the sense that his example was seminal for most of the actors, contemporary racemongers are not simply Powell tribute acts, even if that is how some present themselves at times. While they attempt to emulate his considerable success in popularizing racism, they have also learned from the problems which he encountered and the political dead ends in which the extreme right – who followed him in overt racism – also found themselves.