Britain's Brexit decade fuels renewed debate on EU re‑entry

A new YouGov poll finds 57% of Britons now consider Brexit a mistake and 55% support rejoining the EU, with support strongest among 18‑24‑year‑olds, where 86% favour a return. Political figures such as Labour's Andy Burnham and former health secretary Wes Streeting have voiced criticism of Brexit but reject reopening the issue, describing a return to the bloc as an “unrealistic mirage”.

Academic Robert Tomb Tombs argues that Brexit has not caused the economic disaster predicted and that the original arguments—sovereignty, control over immigration and democratic accountability—remain relevant. He notes that net migration rose from about 224,000 in 2019 to 906,000 in 2023, a 302 % increase, suggesting that the promised “control” over borders has been leveraged to expand immigration rather than reduce it.