Two-thirds of EU citizens back UK rejoining bloc, survey finds

Two-thirds of EU citizens would back Britain rejoining the bloc, while most UK voters say Brexit has been bad for the issues they care about and want closer ties, including levels of integration – such as free movement – long seen as toxic, a survey has found. Ten years after the Brexit referendum, the polling by the European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR) , a thinktank, found 66% of respondents across 15 countries felt UK membership was a very good, good or “neither a good nor a bad” idea. The average comfortably exceeded those favouring a closer relationship (59%) or the status quo (46%). Support for rejoin ranged from lows of 56% in Bulgaria and 59% in France and Italy to highs of 75% in the Netherlands and Denmark. Even voters for far-right and EU-critical parties said they would support closer relations between the bloc and the UK, including a majority of backers of Poland’s Confederation (71%), Germany’s AfD (58%) and France’s National Rally (58%). Many European leaders have reflected this view. France’s president, Emmanuel Macron, has said the door is “always open” and Spain’s prime minister, Pedro Sánchez, has said Spain would “absolutely” support British membership. Alexander Stubb, Finland’s president, has explicitly named the UK as a candidate for membership, saying: “We need a UK voice in Europe. We really miss you guys.” In May, the European Green party formally invited the UK to rejoin . …