The Cost of Brexit

How Brexit has Affected the UK

Brexit has had a huge impact across many areas of British life, from the economy, to work and travel opportunities, and our relationship with the rest of the world.

The Economic Cost of Brexit

Brexit has hugely damaged the British economy. According to government figures, the UK economy is at least 4% smaller than it would be if we had stayed in the EU. The real number could be much higher.

The economic cost of Brexit is driven by a range of factors. Extra paperwork and border checks cause delays and make it much more expensive for British businesses to import and export goods from Europe. Marks & Spencer reported that they had to open a whole new warehouse to store all the additional Brexit paperwork.

Many companies either relocated or opened new offices within the EU, to get around these restrictions, leading to a loss of jobs in the UK.

Brexit also led to staff shortages in many sectors, including the NHS, as it has become much harder to recruit skilled workers from the EU.

Lost Opportunities Caused by Brexit

Brexit led to British people losing many of the rights and freedoms that they formerly benefited from as EU citizens. In particular, we lost the right to live, work and study, without restrictions, in 27 other EU countries. 

Now, the amount of time British people can spend in EU countries is usually limited by the ‘90 day rule’. Britons who want to live or work in another European country have to meet complex visa and residency requirements.

Brexit also led to a loss of opportunities for funding and collaboration. For example, as part of Brexit, the UK left the Erasmus+ programme, which had been giving 55,000 people a year the chance to participate in projects related to education, training and social mobility.

The Political Cost of Brexit

The divisions and disinformation that characterised the 2016 Brexit referendum and its aftermath have had a lasting impact on the UK. They left many people in the country with a distrust towards politicians and political institutions. 

Brexit has also had a negative effect on the UK’s global standing. Now that we are outside the EU, Britain is a less appealing place for businesses to invest. Many EU citizens in the UK also reported that, after Brexit, it has felt like a less open and welcoming place to live and work.

We have less influence outside the EU than we had when we were full members, and our ability to come up with shared solutions on issues such as security, migration or the environment is more limited.

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It’s clear that Brexit has had a huge cost for the UK. That’s why the European Movement is campaigning to reverse Brexit and rebuild our ties with the EU.

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