On June 23, 2016, British <\/b>voters chose to leave the European Union, sending shockwaves across the continent.<\/p>\n
To mark the anniversary, the Bertelsmann Foundation <\/b>(Bertelsmann Stiftung) released exclusive <\/b>data from public opinion surveys conducted over the past ten years in the United Kingdom<\/b> and the European Union<\/b>. The findings show that Brexit <\/b>did not cause further fragmentation of the EU <\/b>, nor did it lead to a permanent divergence between British and European public opinion. Instead, they signal a shared preference for realistic cooperation.<\/p>\n
Fears that Brexit <\/b>would trigger a broader exit <\/b>from the EU <\/b>never materialized. In March 2026<\/b>, only 21%<\/b> of Britons and 18% <\/b>of EU citizens believed that other member states would follow the example of the United Kingdom<\/b> and leave <\/b>the Union; less than half the percentage recorded in March 2018<\/b>. While the result of the 2016 Brexit referendum was close, such a majority has not reappeared since then. When asked how they would vote <\/b>in a referendum on EU membership, more than 50%<\/b> of Britons have consistently stated over the past ten years that they would vote to remain<\/b>. The most recent figures, from March 2026, show a steady majority in favor of remaining<\/b>, at 57%.<\/b><\/p>\n
The populist <\/b>promise that people would be better off after Brexit <\/b>proved to be false. Shortly after the referendum<\/b>, Britons were relatively optimistic about their future outside the EU. A decade later, that optimism about Brexit has collapsed. In March 2026, only 41%<\/b> of Britons said they felt positive about their personal situation in the future, marking a decline of 21 percentage points. Overall, the early optimism about Brexit has given way to a wave of pessimism in the United Kingdom.<\/b><\/p>\n
Brexit has not created a permanent psychological divide <\/b>between British and European public opinion<\/b>. For ten years, Britons and continental Europeans have increasingly shared common concerns and expectations regarding the future of Europe. In March 2026, their attitudes were remarkably similar: support for a stronger EU role in global affairs stood at 66%<\/b> in the United Kingdom and 71% <\/b>across the EU; roughly half of respondents on both sides viewed the EU positively, and levels of satisfaction with democracy<\/b>democracy<\/b> as well as perceptions <\/b>of the EU\u2019s direction were nearly identical.<\/p>\n
Jake Benford,<\/b> a specialist at the Bertelsmann Stiftung<\/b> for the United Kingdom,<\/b> says: \u201cThe public has moved faster than politics. Citizens are increasingly recognizing that European fragmentation comes at a cost: less security, less resilience, and less influence in the world<\/b>. The question is whether politicians can move beyond the divisions of the past and respond to this growing public realism.\u201d<\/p>\n
Florian Kommer,<\/b> a Europe expert at Bertelsmann Stiftung<\/b>, commented: \u201cIn 2016<\/b>, many believed that the Brexit referendum marked the beginning of the end for the European Union<\/b>. A decade later<\/b>, the picture looks very different. Our findings show that the scope for EU-UK cooperation<\/b> may be broader today than is often assumed.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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