Advertisement

OPINION - Talking Point: Has your view on Brexit changed?

Demonstrations continued long after the 2016 vote (Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Demonstrations continued long after the 2016 vote (Bloomberg via Getty Images)

Only 38 per cent of British adults think that leaving the European Union was the right decision – six years after 52 per cent of voters in the referendum backed Brexit.

Analysis by the Standard of 211 polls found that 49 per cent now think leaving the EU was a mistake, while 13 per cent are unsure either way.

That isn’t necessarily to say large numbers of those who voted for Brexit are now saying they would make their mark in a different box if they were given another opportunity. The 52:48 result reflects how 33.6 million people voted, compared to what people now say in surveys, which may include those who did not vote or were not eligible to vote in 2016 (such as those who have since turned 18).

“Between YouGov’s first polling on this issue and the figures today, there has been only around a 6-point increase in the percentage of people who think Brexit was the ‘wrong’ decision, and a slightly larger, but still small, decrease in the percentage of people who think it was ‘right’,” said Patrick English, associate director of political and social research at YouGov.

He added: “A large proportion of the widening in the wrong vs right gap can be attributed to generational replacement alone, with Brexit supporters far likely to be older and those who supported Remain much younger.”

Nevertheless, the polling analysis does suggest changes in opinion have gone one way, and some will certainly feel the reality they’re seeing is different to what the campaigns put forward.

Has your view on Brexit changed? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below for the chance to be featured on the ES website.