EU caves: UK secures huge victory over London finances (2024)

FAQs

Did the UK succeed from the EU? ›

The UK is the only sovereign country to have left the EU. The UK had been a member state of the EU or its predecessor, the European Communities (EC), since 1 January 1973. Following Brexit, EU law and the Court of Justice of the European Union no longer have primacy over British laws.

The benefits were much greater than the costs, probably by a ratio of about 6 to 1. The UK benefited from lower trade costs and higher volumes of trade with other member countries and this raised productivity.

The Commission estimate that the UK made a gross contribution (after the rebate) of £17.5 billion in 2020 and received around £6 billion of receipts from the EU. The Commission, therefore, estimate that the UK's net contribution in 2020 was around £11.5 billion.

Brexit is an abbreviation of two English words: 'Britain' and 'exit' and refers to the withdrawal process of the United Kingdom (UK) from the European Union (EU).

The average Briton was nearly £2,000 worse off in 2023, while the average Londoner was nearly £3,400 worse off last year as a result of Brexit, the report reveals. * It also calculates that there are nearly two million fewer jobs overall in the UK due to Brexit – with almost 300,000 fewer jobs in the capital alone.

With rejoining an unlikely prospect in the near future, the EU and its member states are instead focused on closer cooperation with the UK. What closer cooperation looks like depends not only on the results of the UK general election, but also what happens in the European Parliament elections in June.

The United Kingdom was overtaken by Germany for the coveted top spot among the richest countries in Europe in 2023. According to the World Population Review, Europe is home to some of the wealthiest nations globally, with remarkable variations in economic prosperity.

The UK previously came in second place in the ranking, with roughly 10 billion euros of net contributions in 2018. Poland was the biggest monetary benefactor from the EU, coming out with 11.9 billion euros earned, far ahead of Greece (4.3 billion euros) and Hungary (4.1 billion euros).

Research by the Centre for European Reform suggests the UK economy is 2.5% smaller than it would have been if Remain had won the referendum. Public finances fell by £26 billion a year. This amounts to £500 million a week and is growing.

Higher quality of life elsewhere including lower costs of living, easier access to healthcare and education. Political instability or dissatisfaction with the UK government's actions and policies. To move closer to family. Preferable climate or natural environment elsewhere.

Was leaving the EU a mistake? ›

Share of people who think Brexit was the right or wrong decision 2020-2024. As of May 2024, 55 percent of people in Great Britain thought that it was wrong to leave the European Union, compared with 31 percent who thought it was the right decision.

Factors included sovereignty, immigration, the economy and anti-establishment politics, amongst various other influences. The result of the referendum was that 51.8% of the votes were in favour of leaving the European Union.

Britain's Brexit Success

UK exports are growing – reaching £870 billion in the 12 months to November 2023, and services exports are at an all-time high03. Since the referendum, the UK economy has grown faster than Germany, Italy, and Japan and at a similar rate to France (end-Q2 2016 – Q3 2023)04.

Leaving the EU has meant that the UK has not had to contribute to the significant new liabilities arising from the EU's Covid response including, for the first time, the EU's borrowing of up to €750 billion between 2021–24.

The UK is still geographically part of Europe after Brexit, but it is no longer part of the European Union (EU). The 90-day Brexit rule allows British citizens to visit Europe for short trips, but they will need a visa for extended stays.

January 31, 2020 at 3:00 PM PST

Brexit / Start date