PA
Happy Brexit Anniversary to those who celebrate. It’s been some eight years for all the masochists out there. On this day in 2016, British voters elected to leave the European Union by a margin of 52% to 48% – and Rishi Sunak couldn’t be happier.
ALSO READ: Blow for Brexit: 84% of younger voters ‘now want to rejoin the EU’
The Prime Minister, in desperate need of a distraction following a disastrous election campaign, took to social media on Sunday to commemorate the date of the referendum – and he was more than happy to flaunt his Vote Leave credentials.
“Eight years ago today, I proudly voted for Brexit. While we delivered on the will of the people, Keir Starmer tried to reverse your vote. That’s the difference between the two of us.” | Rishi Sunak
In all fairness, Sir Keir should be putting that statement on a campaign poster. Support for Brexit has hit an all-time low in 2024, with most recent opinion polls showing that a vote to return to EU membership would be backed 60-40 by the general public.
Bombshell data released by Savanta this week also shows just how unpopular Brexit it is among younger voters – 84% of respondents aged between 18-25, representing the next generation of the electorate, would prefer to rejoin the EU.
Public opinion is one thing, but cold, hard numbers are another. Legal expert Peter Stefanovic was quick to remind Mr. Sunak of just how costly the whole Brexit experiment has been since our divorce from the trading bloc was officially ratified.
In a Tweet which has comprehensively out-performed the PM’s, Stefanovic quoted Bloomberg in saying that Brexit has cost the UK ‘around £100 billion a year in lost output’, leaving the state with less money to invest in hospitals, schools, and public services.
The last sentence is the real killer, and Sunak – who now looks likely to have just 11 days left in Downing Street – was confronted by a harsh reality. As most Brexiteers eventually find out, there are some economic truths you can’t spin away from…
