Voices: ‘Brexit benefits exist for everybody but us’: Readers on UK’s struggle as new poll says things are worse than ever

Brexit has made everything from the economy to immigration worse in Britain, a new poll reveals – and Independent readers have been weighing in on what went wrong.

Many argued that the problem is not Brexit itself, but decades of incompetent governments failing to make it work, leaving the UK weaker economically and with less influence on the world stage.

Several highlighted that the promises to “take back control” have failed, with trade deals disadvantaging the UK, borders still insecure, and little tangible gain from leaving the EU.

Some readers blamed misleading Brexiteer campaigns for stirring public support, arguing that the 2016 referendum was driven more by emotion than understanding.

Others felt the result was too close to justify such a major change and should have required a clearer mandate.

Several commenters warned that the UK’s diminished global influence and over-reliance on the US under Donald Trump make rejoining the EU increasingly necessary, though they acknowledged it would come with conditions and lost privileges.

Here’s what you had to say:

The so-called Brexit benefits exist for everybody but the UK. Take trade deals, for example. While the UK was still in the EU, the EU would do the negotiations and, no matter how long it took, the EU always made sure the deal was good for the EU.

Now the UK is on its own and can make its own trade deals. Every trade partner pulled the UK over the table because, firstly, the UK market is 69 million strong (the EU market is over 450 million strong) and, secondly, the UK has no time – it is desperate to show a trade deal. All trade partners used these “Brexit benefits” to their advantage.

There are Brexit benefits, just not for the UK.

Rasputin007

Multiple incompetent prime ministers with hopeless policies is the issue, not Brexit. EU mandarins told us we would be punished for daring to leave the EU and to deter others from leaving. The EU wants the UK to fail and does nothing to stop illegal immigrants crossing their borders to get to the UK. The EU wants us back in the EU to pay our huge fees to them, but on our knees to beg to rejoin.

Kjp

Living in the EU, I am comfortable in the knowledge that the wreckers and obstructors have gone for good.

One only has to read some of the hostile comments to be reminded that there is no feeling of acceptance of the European ethos. At best, they still think of the EU as just a market.

There is no rejoining, and what goes on in the EU is not their concern.

Morseman

What do British voters know? They first voted for Brexit and now they say that it made things worse. If the UK rejoins, I bet that within six months they will say that rejoining made things worse.

The same thing goes for general elections. They elect a government with a sound majority and six months later they said government is in the doldrums. It happened to the Tory party, it is now happening to Labour, and it will happen to Reform or to whoever runs the country next.

paul

Actually, it is the failure to make Brexit work that has made things worse, coupled with useless governments for the last 30 years.

Things will not get any better until we get a government determined to do what is necessary for the country rather than their party.

This is why Reform keeps leading the polls, because they say they are determined to do so.

OlTom

One clear thing that I believe will force us back into the EU is, perversely, the US and Trump. It’s quite clear we no longer have any influence on world politics. The US, China and Russia view us as a joke. We talk but have no means to back anything up. We have a nuclear deterrent, but that’s in reality controlled by the US, and we have no money or any other levers we can pull. We cannot trade on history anymore.

So we have a political choice which, sooner or later, the idiots in our parliament will have to make: become increasingly insignificant and ignored by everyone and watch our economy continue to flatline, or rejoin the EU, where we do have influence and power, and help that bloc be a force in the new world of autocratic US imperialism.

Harry

Who on earth would make such a major decision as leaving the EU after such a knife-edge 50/50 vote result? It clearly needed a clarification of issues and forecasts, surveying why people voted thus, then a rerun, perhaps with, say, 60/40 being the minimum Brexit vote difference to trigger either leaving or confidently staying.

PwhiSto

All polls and economic analysis clearly show Brexit has damaged the UK economy, with no discernible benefit bar the spurious, empty slogan of “taking back control”. With the UK economy flatlining and no immediate remedies coming from Rachel Reeves, Keir Starmer seriously needs to open our entry back into European markets, without the dilatory effects of cross-border red tape.

“No time to stand beneath the boughs and stare as long as sheep or cows.” Time is very much of the essence for the economic welfare of the UK and Starmer’s political future.

Benjaminrabbit

So 66 per cent say Brexit hurts Britain. Only 22 per cent say it had a positive impact. What are you waiting for, Starmer? What are you scared of?

However, although the EU would welcome us back, it will be on its terms. We have lost the excellent terms we had before Brexit. We will not regain them. There will be conditions. We will have to accept them if we want to stop the harm which Brexit keeps inflicting on the UK.

Having caused so much mayhem with the terminal stupidity of Brexit, so much extra work and changes for our neighbours, it is perfectly normal for the bloc to want to protect its members. They do not need the UK. If they had needed us, the union would have collapsed over the past 10 years.

HASTINGSPIER

Newsflash: the government doesn’t care what we think. They only want to win elections.

The only reason we were given a referendum on EU membership in 2016 is that David Cameron used it to sideline Ukip and win the 2015 election to hold on to power (the gamble backfired in the end for him, but that’s another story).

Labour, meanwhile, has no incentive to offer another referendum. It may win back a few votes it has lost to the Greens, but the main threat is now Reform.

Ian Robinson

The reason why people on the continent don’t understand Brexit is that it is entirely irrational. It makes no sense to cut yourself off when you end up with much higher costs and inflation, loss of rights and a much weaker geopolitical position as well.

But it’s done. You voted for it twice and now you have to make the most of the situation. You are stuck with Brexit, whether you like it or not.

Leftyandproud

Yes, there were things wrong within the EU, but you never change things from the outside. Brexit was a crass economic and people decision. The sooner we can get back into Europe, where we belong, and away from the unhinged Trump (only 15 per cent of our trade is with the US, and that could deteriorate at Trump’s whim), the better.

Hugh Colby

Some of the comments have been edited for this article for brevity and clarity.

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