Away from the torrential rain in some parts of Britain, the possibility of Brexit has been very much on the minds of Britons in sunny southern Spain. A sleepless night beckons for some, it seems.



The Guardian’s Sam Jones has been canvassing opinion in Orihuela Costa, the largest British enclave in Spain:

Early evening found Colin Lindgren nursing an al fresco pint at the Emerald Isle club and reflecting on his paradoxical feelings about Brexit.

Like many of the expats who have made homes here, the retired 75-year-old, originally from Bedfordshire, would hate to give up the life of sunshine he and his wife have enjoyed for 14 years.

If he’d got round to getting his postal vote in on time, he would have opted to remain. Yet if he were still in England, he would have voted to leave the EU.

“I don’t like the way we were conned into it as the man on the street,” he said. “When we first went into it, it was a trading deal. It’s just escalated and the whole thing has got totally out of hand.”

There is however, little to tempt him back to the UK – and it’s not just the excellent Spanish healthcare, the bowls and the sense of community in Alicante province.

“We couldn’t afford to go back now,” he said. “If we had to, it would be very expensive. The cost of living here is lower and it’s a very sensible life.”