As we look forward to 2017, the next year will be dominated by the changes set in train in 2016. In Britain, whatever the decision of the Supreme Court in January, the Article 50 procedure for leaving the European Union is almost certain to be triggered by the end of March – hence the focus in the Prime Minister’s New Year message, speaking of what her priorities will be “when I sit around the negotiating table in Europe this year”. Those negotiations are going to absorb the greater part of the Government’s energy and attention over the coming 12 to 24 months.

Theresa May says that her aim in those talks is to “get the right deal – not just for those who voted to leave, but for every single person in this country”. This is an admirable objective, but her declaration that “we are no longer the 52 per cent who voted Leave and the 48 per cent who voted Remain but one great union of people and nations with a proud history and a bright future” is an aspiration rather than a statement of fact.

The nation is still divided. Those who voted to Remain, by and large, still think that leaving the EU is a mistake. The Independent still believes it is a mistake. That does not mean that we refuse to accept the decision of the people, but it does mean that we should be cautious as we proceed. We should seek to mitigate the damaging effects of leaving the EU, and as a nation we should try to keep our options open.

Tim Farron says he will vote against triggering Article 50

We want to lend more power to the elbow of Philip Hammond, the Chancellor, who wisely argues for a transitional agreement after Britain leaves the EU in 2019. This would preserve some of the advantages of EU membership after we have left, and give us more time to negotiate the complex trade deals needed with the EU and the rest of the world.

If, after we have left, there is a big shift in public opinion, it would be open to a sovereign people to change its mind and to seek to rejoin a (possibly reformed) EU, but there is no point in arguing for a second referendum now.

Equally, the idea of an electoral alliance against Brexit, or against a hard Brexit, is one that should be judged case by case. It made sense for the Greens to stand aside for the Liberal Democrats in the Richmond Park by-election, but the situation in the forthcoming by-election in Copeland is less clear.

In the meantime it is interesting that Ms May also pledges to repair other “divisions in our country” – between “those who can easily buy their own home, send their children to a great school, find a secure job, and those who cannot”. This commitment to social justice is welcome, although we are doubtful that she has the right policies to deliver it.

Brexit Concerns Show all 26 1 /26 Brexit Concerns Brexit Concerns Brexit will put British patients at 'back of the queue' for new drugs Brexit will put British patients at the “back of the queue” for vital new drugs, the Government has been warned – forcing them to wait up to two years longer A medicines regulator has raised the alarm over a likely decision to pull out of the European Medicines Agency (EMA), as well as the EU itself. ealth Secretary Jeremy Hunt dropped the bombshell , when he said he expected the UK would quit the EMA – because it is subject to rulings by the European Court of Justice. Getty Images Brexit Concerns London to lose status as 'gateway to Europe' for banks One of Germany’s top banking regulators has warned that London could lose its status as “gateway to Europe” for the banking sector after Britain quits the European trading bloc. Andreas Dombret, who is an executive board member for the Bundesbank—Germany’s central bank—told a private meeting of German businesses and banks earlier this week in Frankfurt that even if banking rules were “equivalent” between the UK and the rest of the EU, that was still “miles away from [Britain having] access to the single market”, the BBC reports. Jason Hawkes Brexit Concerns Exodus The number of financial sector professionals in Britain and continental Europe looking for jobs in Ireland rocketed in the months after the UK voted to leave the European Union Shutterstock Brexit Concerns Brexit is making FTSE 100 executives richer Pay packages of many FTSE 100 chief executive officers are partly tied to how well share prices are doing rather than the CEO’s performance -- and some stocks are soaring. ritish equities got a boost since the June vote because the likes of Rio Tinto, Smiths Group and WPP generate most sales abroad and earn a fortune when they convert these revenues back into the weakened pound. Sterling’s fall also made UK stocks more affordable for overseas investors. Rex Brexit Concerns Theresa May: UK to leave single market Theresa May has said the UK "cannot possibly" remain within the European single market, as staying in it would mean "not leaving the EU at all". Getty Brexit Concerns Lead campaigner Gina Miller and her team outside the High Court Getty Brexit Concerns Raymond McCord holds up his newly issued Irish passport alongside his British passport outside the High Court in Belfast following a judges dismissal of the UK's first legal challenges to Brexit PA wire Brexit Concerns SDLP leader Colum Eastwood leaving the High Court in Belfast following a judges dismissal of the UK's first legal challenges to Brexit PA wire Brexit Concerns Migrants with luggage walk past a graffiti on a wall as they leave the 'Jungle' migrant camp, as part of a major three-day operation planned to clear the camp in Calais Getty Brexit Concerns Migrants leave messages on their tents in the Jungle migrant camp Getty Brexit Concerns The Adventist Development and Relief Agency (Adra) which distributes approximately 700 meals daily in the northern Paris camp states that it is noticing a spike in new migrant arrivals this week, potentially linked the the Calais 'jungle' camp closure - with around 1000 meals distributed today EPA Brexit Concerns Migrant workers pick apples at Stocks Farm in Suckley, Britain Reuters Brexit Concerns Many farmers across the country are voicing concerns that Brexit could be a dangerous step into the unknown for the farming industry Getty Brexit Concerns Bank of England governor Mark Carney who said the long-term outlook for the UK economy is positive, but growth was slowing in the wake of the Brexit vote PA Brexit Concerns The Dow Jones industrial average closed down over 600 points on the news with markets around the globe pluninging Getty Brexit Concerns Immigration officers deal with each member of the public seeking entry into the United Kingdom but on average, 10 a day are refused entry at this London airport and between 2008 and 2009, 33,100 people were detained at the airport for mainly passport irregularities Getty Brexit Concerns A number of global investment giants have threatened to move their European operations out of London if Brexit proves to have a negative impact on their businesses Getty Brexit Concerns Following the possibility of a Brexit the UK would be released from its renewable energy targets under the EU Renewable Energy Directive and from EU state aid restrictions, potentially giving the government more freedom both in the design and phasing out of renewable energy support regimes Getty Brexit Concerns A woman looking at a chart showing the drop in the pound (Sterling) against the US Dollar in London after Britain voted to leave the EU Getty Brexit Concerns Young protesters outside the Houses of Parliament in Westminster, to protest against the United Kingdom's decision to leave the EU following the referendum Getty Brexit Concerns Applications from Northern Ireland citizens for Irish Passports has soared to a record high after the UK Voted in favour of Leaving the EU Getty Brexit Concerns NFU Vice President Minette Batters with Secretary of State, Andrea Leadsome at the National Farmers Union (NFU) took machinery, produce, farmers and staff to Westminster to encourage Members of Parliament to back British farming, post Brexit Getty Brexit Concerns The latest reports released by the UK Cabinet Office warn that expats would lose a range of specific rights to live, to work and to access pensions, healthcare and public services. The same reports added that UK citizens abroad would not be able to assume that these rights will be guaranteed in the future Getty Brexit Concerns A British resident living in Spain asks questions during an informative Brexit talk by the "Brexpats in Spain" group, about Spanish legal issues to become Spanish citizens, at the town hall in Benalmadena, Spain Reuters Brexit Concerns The collapse of Great Britain appears to have been greatly exaggerated given the late summer crowds visiting city museums, hotels, and other important tourist attractions Getty Brexit Concerns The U.K. should maintain European Union regulations covering everything from working hours to chemicals until after the government sets out its plans for Brexit, said British manufacturers anxious to avoid a policy vacuum and safeguard access to their biggest export market Getty

If we were asked our priorities for 2017, we would add a greater spirit of liberal tolerance, which ought to have been compatible with a Leave vote although Ms May does not appear to think so. And we would hope for swift action on the Paris Agreement on climate change, which came into force in November after it was ratified by enough states the previous month.

Which brings us to the United States, where on 20 January the decision of the American people in 2016 will take effect as Donald Trump is sworn in as the 45th President. The question of climate change will be an important early test for the new administration. It is also a big test for rules-bound global politics, because the US has already ratified the Paris Agreement, as has China. Mr Trump has described the scientific consensus on climate change as a “hoax”, so this is one policy on which we hope that the checks and balances of the American system are stronger than the rhetorical description of the presidency as the most powerful office in the world.

It may be tempting for us Europeans to hope that Mr Trump will concentrate on his programme of rebuilding American infrastructure and bringing new jobs to the left-behind states of the Midwest. But it would be a mistake to imagine that American isolationism would benefit the rest of the world. It would only create a vacuum that Vladimir Putin might seek to fill.

Instead, we have to hope that Mr Trump is not as intolerant and as impulsive as he has sometimes seemed, and that the wisdom of the US constitution will constrain him.