FOR people in Oxfordshire – like the rest of the UK – it was a decade of two halves: before and after Brexit.

And, like it or not, political leaders with county connections had a big part to play in the referendum itself, and what happened afterwards.

It was Witney MP David Cameron as Prime Minister who called the historic referendum on June 23, 2016, that led to the nation choosing narrowly to leave the European Union.

And the shock result led to him first announcing his resignation as Prime Minister and then as Witney MP.

Nothing was the same after the EU referendum and the country has been feeling the effects ever since.

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After former Wheatley Park School pupil Theresa May, the next Prime Minister, was unable to get the House of Commons to back her Brexit, MPs finally pushed through former Henley MP Boris Johnson's deal after he as Prime Minister won the winter general election on December 12.

Following the 2016 referendum, business leaders said uncertainty was harming the economy.

Car sales slumped, the high street suffered numerous big-name closures, and house sales slowed but the local economy stayed strong with close to full employment.

In local politics, Keith Mitchell resigned as leader of county council after 10 years in November 2011 and fellow Conservative Ian Hudspeth took over in May 2012.

In 2018 Bob Price stepped down as leader of Oxford City Council after 10 years in charge and Susan Brown was appointed his successor.

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Anneliese Dodds replaced Andrew Smith as Labour MP for Oxford East in 2017 and Wantage MP Ed Vaizey, first elected in 2005, stood down in 2019.

City councillors Van Coulter and Jennifer Pegg died in 2017 and in 2018 former Lord Mayor Jean Fooks died – she was first elected to the city council in 1992.

As well as the political shocks, there were also a number of dramatic breaking news stories throughout the decade.

In January 2015, there was a major fire at the offices of South Oxfordshire and Vale of White Horse District Council.

Andrew Main later admitted setting fires that caused major damage at the council office, at an undertakers and a thatched cottage in a nearby village.

In the afternoon of February 14, 2017, a blast rocked the city when a block of flats in West Oxford exploded.

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Part of Gibbs Crescent in West Oxford was reduced to a flaming pile of rubble as fuel stored in the flat of resident Guido Schuette ignited.

The 48-year-old died in the Valentine’s Day explosion, which a coroner ruled was likely an accident.

In 2014 at Didcot Power Station the first part of the demolition of the cooling towers took place - the first three were demolished in July of that year. This followed the closure of the coal-fired Didcot A power station.

But the second three cooling towers were not demolished until August 2019.

The delay was caused by the collapse of the boiler house in February 2016, which resulted in the deaths of four men.

In cultural matters, earlier this year the Ashmolean celebrated 10 years since its multi-million pound revamp in 2009.

In 2015 the Bodleian's Weston Library opened and has been a major success, staging numerous successful exhibitions including one on The Lord of the Rings author JRR Tolkien.

Oxford author Philip Pullman scored major successes with La Belle Sauvage in 2017 and in 2019 with The Secret Commonwealth.

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On the high street, Oxford fared better than some other cities, following the £440m reopening of the Westgate Centre in October 2017 with more than 100 new shops and restaurants.

At the Covered Market, after a number of high-profile departures, landlords the city council gave it a boost by splitting up large vacant units into smaller units.

Haymans fishmongers left for the Osney Mead industrial estate in 2017 but a new fishmonger was found and opened earlier this year. The market is now almost full.

There was bad news at the end of the decade when family-run department store Boswells announced it is to close next year after first trading in 1738.

In 2018 it was confirmed that the cost of the Oxford Flood Alleviation Channel had risen from £120m to £150m, with the money in place to go ahead with the scheme but it faced numerous delays including a compulsory purchase orders public inquiry.

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An announcement was made the same year that the Oxford to Cambridge Expressway was to go ahead. Campaigners have opposed it and Transport Secretary Grant Shapps has suggested that the scheme is under review.

A £9m congestion-busting scheme is to go ahead in Botley Road in 2020. The city and county councils have also announced Connecting Oxford proposals to cut congestion in the city centre using bus-only lanes and other measures including a workplace parking levy.

Plans are under way for the creation of a Zero Emission Zone in Oxford city centre to cut carbon emissions.

Initial proposals suggested the zone would see all petrol and diesel taxis, cars and buses excluded from six central streets from 2020 but this was then amended.

In 2012 the system of having police authority committees was abandoned and Anthony Stansfeld was elected Thames Valley Police and Crime Commissioner.

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In 2013 Oxford was in the national spotlight after a gang of men were convicted of grooming and sexually assaulting vulnerable children in the case known as Operation Bullfinch.

Campsfield House, the immigration detention centre in Kidlington closed in 2019 after opening in 1993.

In the Oxford Diocese, Rt Rev Dr Steven Croft was appointed Bishop of Oxford in 2016, succeeding Rt Rev John Pritchard.

The OX5 Run continues to support Oxford Children's Hospital and will take place on Sunday, March 29, 2020.

The new £14m Ronald McDonald House, supporting families at the children's hospital, is now being built.

With former Henley MP and Oxford University student Boris Johnson having secured a Conservative majority in Parliament, the UK is now due to officially leave the European Union on January 31, and the new world awaits.

What this means for Oxfordshire we wait to find out: see the Oxford Mail for details.