After years of difficult negotiations, the United Kingdom became the first country to leave the European Union on January 31, 2020. But five years later, only 30 percent of Britons believe the country did the right thing by voting for Brexit, according to a YouGov poll.
Five years ago, two crowds gathered outside the British Parliament, some with Union Jacks and cheers, others with European Union flags and tears. On January 31, 2020 at 23:00 p.m. London time, midnight at the EU headquarters in Brussels. The United Kingdom officially left the bloc after almost five decades of membership that had brought free movement and free trade between Britain and 27 other European countries.
For Brexit supporters, the United Kingdom was now a sovereign nation in charge of its own destiny. For opponents, it was an isolated and diminished country. It was, without question, a divided nation that had taken a step into the dark. Five years later, people and businesses are still struggling with the economic, social and cultural fallout.
HISTORICAL DECISION
“The impact has been really quite profound,” said political scientist Anand Menon, who heads the think tank UK in a Changing Europe. “It has changed our economy. “And our politics have changed fundamentally too,” he added. “We have seen a new divide around Brexit becoming part of electoral politics.” The government’s Office for Budget Responsibility predicts that the UK’s exports and imports will both be around 15% lower in the long term than if the UK had remained in the EU and economic productivity 4% lower than it would have been otherwise. Brexit supporters argue that the short-term pain will be offset by Britain’s new freedom to strike trade deals around the world. Since Brexit. The UK has signed trade deals with countries including Australia, New Zealand and Canada.
THE CONSEQUENCES OF BREXIT
In some ways, Brexit has not played out as either supporters or opponents expected. The COVID-19 pandemic and the Russian invasion of Ukraine have compounded the economic disruption and made it harder to discern the economic impact of Britain’s exit from the EU. In one key area, immigration, Brexit’s impact has been the opposite of what many predicted.
The desire to reduce immigration was a key reason many people voted to leave the EU, yet immigration is now much higher than before Brexit, as the number of visas granted to workers from around the world has increased. Meanwhile, the rise of protectionist political leaders, particularly newly elected US President Donald Trump, has raised the stakes for Britain, already caught between its close neighbours in Europe and its transatlantic “special relationship” with the US.
REUNIFICATION
Polls suggest that public opinion in the UK has deteriorated over Brexit, with a majority of people now thinking it was a mistake. But reunification seems a distant prospect. Fewer than three in ten Britons think Brexit was a good thing and most want the country to return to the European Union, a new opinion poll has shown, five years after the UK officially left the EU. In the 2016 referendum, 52 percent of Britons voted for Brexit.
After years of difficult negotiations, the United Kingdom became the first country to leave the European Union on January 31, 2020. But five years later, only 30 percent of Britons believe the country did the right thing by voting for Brexit, according to a YouGov poll released on Wednesday. The poll was conducted among 2225 respondents. Labour Party Prime Minister Keir Starmer, elected in July 2024, has promised to “reset” relations with the EU but has ruled out rejoining the customs union or single market.
