A majority of Britons believe that Brexit has been detrimental to the economy and restricting immigration. This is suggested by a poll that opinion researcher Opinium conducted among 2,000 Britons on the occasion of the three-year Brexit anniversary.
Patrick van IJzendoornDecember 31, 2023, 6:24 PM
Leaving the European Union, proponents had promised, would not only lead to a sense of independence, but also to better healthcare, lower prices in supermarkets and more options for controlling national borders. But almost half of those surveyed now believe that Brexit has had a negative impact. Britons who voted to leave the EU are also unimpressed by the result, especially regarding immigration restrictions.
A fifth of British people consider Brexit a positive experience. One in ten respondents say they have benefited financially from it.
This spring, Nigel Farage, the pacesetter of Brexit, already said that Brexit has failed. “What Brexit has proven,” he said at the time, “is that our politicians are just as worthless as the commissioners in Brussels. We made a mess of it.”
What plays a role in this image is the wave of inflation in the United Kingdom and other European countries. The price increases were partly due to central bank monetary policy and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, but 63 percent of participants Opinium’s research and Sunday newspaper The Observer suspects that Brexit has had an influence. Some Brexiteers had expressed the hope that imports from outside the EU would become cheaper.
The migration factor also plays a major role in the evaluation of Brexit. Immigration into the UK has risen sharply in recent years, both legal, mainly from Asian countries, and illegal across the Channel. A problem for the United Kingdom is that after Brexit it will no longer be part of the Dublin Agreement. It states that a migrant must apply for asylum in the first European country where he or she arrives.
No more free movement of people
It is certain that Brexit will have a negative impact on the free movement of people. That traffic has also become more expensive. One of the ways the British feel this is when they visit the continent, where they have to pay roaming charges again. Next autumn, the European Union also wants to introduce a new entry and exit system that will involve costs for travelers from non-EU countries.
The effect of Brexit on the British economy is an ongoing subject of debate. The UK has been experiencing very slow growth for years. This development goes back to the banking crisis of 2008. Economists from investment bank UBS have predicted growth of 0.6 percent for next year, slightly higher than the euro zone.
Earlier this fall, the British received a boost when Nissan announced that it would invest 2.3 billion euros in the Sunderland factory where electric cars are made.
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2023-12-31 17:24:13
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