Majority of Britons now view Brexit as a mistake, poll shows
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A YouGov survey finds that over half of UK adults consider leaving the EU a mistake and would support a new referendum, while political leaders show little appetite for revisiting the issue.
A YouGov poll released this week indicates that a majority of British adults now believe the United Kingdom’s departure from the European Union was a mistake. The survey found that 55% of respondents said leaving the bloc was an error, and more than half said they would favour a new referendum on EU membership.
London Mayor Sadiq Khan, who campaigned for the country to remain in the EU, said the long-term consequences of the vote have been “worse than we feared.”
The poll also shows that support for the original Leave vote has eroded. While 30% of those surveyed still think the decision was right, two-thirds of former Leave voters admit to feeling some regret, a sentiment the media has dubbed “Bregret.”
Economic data cited by the Office for Budgetary Responsibility suggest that Brexit has reduced productivity, imports and exports, and an analysis of government figures estimates a 6% hit to the economy attributable to the exit.
Former Brexit champion Nigel Farage, now leader of Reform UK, rejected the notion of regret, telling a BBC interview that leaving the EU was “absolutely the right thing to do.”
Public opinion appears to be shifting among younger voters. A More in Common survey found that 60% of Gen Z respondents would like a new referendum, and overall more than half of those polled said they would support some form of re-joining the EU.
Despite the polling data, political leaders remain reluctant to reopen the debate. Recent local-election gains by Farage’s Reform UK party have not translated into a willingness among mainstream politicians to propose another referendum, leaving the issue largely dormant in parliamentary discussions.