Ten years have passed since the UK voted in a referendum to leave the European Union (EU), and it’s clear that Brexit was a mistake.
Economic experts including the UK Government’s Office of Budget Responsibility have concluded that the UK economy is about 6% smaller than it would have been if we’d stayed in the EU, with investment and trade in goods particularly badly affected, costing the exchequer tens of billions of pounds that could otherwise be invested in improving public services and strengthening defence.
A survey of more than two thousand UK voters published by the European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR) on Sunday 21st June 2026 found that if a referendum was held today 52% would vote to join the EU, with 31% voting to stay out, rising to 70% versus 11% among those who were too young to vote in 2016. The results of the ECFR survey agree with other recent UK polling data on rejoining the EU.
While the ECFR survey found that a large majority of UK voters believe that leaving the EU had had a negative impact on almost all key issues, including the economy and immigration, it also found that they see the EU and its member states as more dependable allies than the US in today’s volatile geopolitical situation, sharing the UK’s key economic and security interests.
Paul Browne, Chair of Cambridge for Europe, said:
“It seems fitting the 10th anniversary of the Brexit referendum is marked by the resignation of yet another UK Prime Minister, as the decision to leave the EU has ushered in an era of profound political instability in this country.
That instability is due in no small part to the real and lasting harm Brexit has inflicted on the UK’s economy and society, lowering investment and trade while legitimising anti-immigrant sentiment. There is no way to “make Brexit work” and continuing vain attempts to appease the minority of voters who still support it will only prolong the division and deepen the damage.
More than half of UK voters now back rejoining the EU, and only one third oppose it. There is three-to-one support for rejoining the Single Market and Customs Union, including bringing back Freedom of Movement with the EU, and it’s clear that the UK wants a new direction.
The economic case for the UK to rejoin the EU is clear, and whoever the next Prime Minister is they must prioritise a much stronger relationship with the EU. This must include urgently seeking to rejoin the Single Market and Customs Union to get the economic growth, investment, and revenue for public services that the UK needs.
However, the strongest arguments for the UK to rejoin the EU are not economic. The world in 2026 is far more fragmented and unstable than it was in 2016, with democracy and the rule of law being undermined everywhere by autocrats, populists and their billionaire oligarch backers. The full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022 brought war back to Europe, while under the Trump presidency the US can no longer be considered a dependable ally.
The UK must reunite with our neighbours in the EU to form a union strong enough to defend our shared values and common interests, and to work with other middle powers across the world to defend democracy, human rights, and the rule of law.
As we look forward to the next decade the question should not just be “what can the EU do for us?”, but rather what can we do together as team Europe to help build a future that is more prosperous, more sustainable, and more just than the world is today.
Cambridge for Europe will continue to campaign for our European future as full EU members!”
