Cardinal Vincent Nichols has said that Brexit is not about Britain “becoming an isolated unit, but finding a different place in the world and in relation to Europe”. Cardinal Nichols, who argued last year that leaving the European Union would create “complex problems” and lead to “further division”, said that while there was much uncertainty around negotiations, he saw “an emerging popular view which says we are not turning in on ourselves but looking for more opportunities”. He was speaking to The Tablet ahead of the release of his new book, Hope in Action. The book, published by SPCK, draws together speeches and homilies on subjects ranging from trafficking to extremism. In the interview, Cardinal Nichols said that Christianity provided a certain foundation for hope. Secularisation, therefore, meant “young people are losing the tools with which to construct a vision of hope,” he said. “That’s not good news to anybody.” He observes a “growing gap between what people think and what political leadership says we should want”. This can help lead to “populism”.