10 years on from the Brexit vote, a majority of Britons would vote to apply to rejoin the EU

New polling by Ipsos given exclusively to Bloomberg News reveals that 58% of likely voters in a hypothetical future referendum would back rejoining the bloc, with almost half (49%) of the public supporting a new referendum after the next General Election.

Ahead of the tenth anniversary of the 2016 referendum on the UK’s membership of the European Union, new polling provided exclusively to Bloomberg News by Ipsos reveals a significant shift in public sentiment 10 years on. 

Key findings include:

• Majority support for rejoining: Among all Britons, 52% think the UK should apply to join the European Union, while exactly a third (33%) think the UK should stay out. The remainder say they don’t know or would not vote in a future referendum. Among likely voters in a future referendum, 58% would vote to rejoin and 37% would vote to stay out. This amounts to a 61% / 39% split once don’t knows are removed.
   

Further analysis among all Britons:

Overwhelming backing from Labour voters: 

• Support for rejoining is particularly concentrated among current Labour voters, with 84% stating that Britain should apply to join the EU.
• But rejoining remains a divisive issue: Whereas 68% of those aged 18-34 and 58% of those aged 35-54 back rejoining, 50% of those aged 55+ want to stay out (37% of that group want to rejoin).  Similarly, whilst 84% of Labour voters, 80% of Lib Dems and 86% of Greens would vote to rejoin, 56% of Conservative voters and 7 in 10 Reform voters (71%) would vote to stay out.
• Appetite for a new referendum: Almost half of Britons support holding a referendum on whether or not the UK should join the European Union. 48% support a referendum taking place before the next General Election (compared to 29% who oppose it), while 49% support a referendum taking place after the next General Election (compared to 26% who oppose it).

Keiran Pedley, Director of Politics at Ipsos, said:

As we approach the ten-year milestone of the Brexit vote, this exclusive data shows a clear shift in the public mood which will be unpacked at our event on June 15th. A majority of the British public, indicate that if asked, the UK should apply to rejoin the European Union. This includes a clear majority of Labour voters. With almost half of Britons open to another referendum, it is clear that the debate over our relationship with Europe is far from settled in the minds of the electorate. With that said, we should be aware that a future referendum might play out differently in practice. Immigration remains a key issue for the British public, one which would likely feature in any campaign. And as our upcoming research will show, when the public are presented with various trade offs involved concerning the UK-EU relationship, a more complex picture emerges.

Technical Note:

• Ipsos interviewed a representative probability sample of 1,137 British adults aged 18+, via the Ipsos UK Knowledge Panel as part of our regular Ipsos Political Monitor series. Data was collected between the 14th – 20th May 2026
• Data are weighted to match the profile of the population.
• All polls are subject to a wide range of potential sources of error.
• This research was conducted in partnership with King's College London and UK in a Changing Europe.