How do people feel about Brexit three years on? - BBC Newsnight

The Brexit referendum of 2016 divided the UK. For some Brexit was an exhilarating opportunity, for others a self-inflicted wound.

It led to the immediate downfall of former prime minister David Cameron, the tormenting and eventual toppling of his successor Theresa May, and along the way it raised questions about the durability of the United Kingdom.

So three years after the UK left the EU, how are people feeling in Westminster, and in Sunderland? - the place where results first indicated that Brexit was on the way.

Newsnight’s political editor Nick Watt has been assessing the political mood.

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#Newsnight #BBCNews

[DanielBrotherston]

"We wanted the benefits of membership without the costs."

These people are adults right?

[francisbasker]

It's kind of funny that the Brits can no longer blame the EU for their problems

[crossknight]

Politicians: "If we get out of the EU, all the money we send them can be used here to improve our country!"
UK citizens: "Cool. Now that we made it out of the EU, where are the millions of dollars we were supposed to be saving after the brexit?"
Politicians: "What money?"

[niklas]

I got a bunch of British friends, all between the age of 22-30.
Every single one of them is so upset about Brexit and how it not only caused a crisis within the UK but also completely fucked up their opportunities to live, work and move in the EU.
They're all trying desperately to get an Irish passport through their Irish nan/grandfather...

[ajcgolf]

The lady with the dog really sums it up with how brexit got voted in, starts off by saying “it hasn’t really made a huge difference to my life” and follows that up with “I still think it was a good idea”
No thought put into it, no reasons given, just a decision made on a whim

[CarlosGarcia-gswd]

In Europe almost no one mentions BREXIT, it is a past issue and of course no one considers that the United Kingdom could return, since Brexit everything works better in the European Union and even the extreme right parties no longer talk about leaving. Farange, Johnson and others have done the European Union a great favor4

[kferg]

as an Australian this decision just seemed insane at the time and most of us laughed at it including all the people I know who are from the UK thought it was totally stupid

[jwebbnature]

I am 26 and British and brexit has more or less ruined several job oppurtunities for me, made my relationship with my EU partner difficult, and has made my day-to-day living in an EU country incredibly stressful. When the brexit vote came out I deattached myself from the UK, but I am still living with the consequences of other people's short-sightedness to this day. What I lost was tremendous, and will scar my life forever. I am not a refugee fleeing violence and unrest, so I understand not everyone is completely sympathetic to people such as myself, but I am an immigrant who has had my open rights to life, love, and employment withdrawn without my consent

[alebigsoos]

I like how the brexiteers describe it as "the best decision we ever made" but still aren't able to describe a single tangible benefit from leaving the EU.

[fukuokakusuo]

I feel so sorry for the youth in Britain. They've lost numerous opportunities that other countries in EU have.

[jakey]

Imagine being able to live anywhere in 27 countries, from the coasts of Spain, to the vineyards of Italy, to the tech center of Berlin, to the islands of Greece and the French countryside....No questions asked, no visa or job needed... and preferring to instead limit yourself to a cold, rainy, northern Atlantic island, with a dying health system, about the size of Wyoming, never able to leave again and thinking as you sip tea in your damp overpriced terrace house that "no one is taking away your jobs anymore and you've taken back control from Brussels" with no change to your daily life other than negative impact. LOL

There literally hasn't been a more stupid choice known to man.

[loooongtimeago]

They forgot they no longer have an empire😂

[Demetri]

I think it's funny that the UK thought they could keep all the benefits of the EU without paying to be a member of the EU.

[exytplu]

It's like when you leave your partner thinking you can do better only to realize you were wrong, but now you are too embarrassed to beg them to take you back, so you start pretending it's all good.

[TheRealSnakePlisken]

You are so on point. The decline in US democracy is following suit, with a large portion of Americans not understanding the principals of governance, economy, and social balance. Perplexing is the human existence.

[aryastark]

As a remain voter. The vote was almost split 50/50. So half the country was very angry and sad at the result. Many like me still are. It was the most idiotic decision ever made

[hannahmurray]

“We’d be a rich country”?? We cut our ties with our biggest trading partner and this man thought it would make us rich? What planet is he on?

[franceskronenwett]

As a Brit living in an EU country I was horrified at Britain's decision to leave the EU. The British people were tricked into leaving by blatant lies by Farage and Johnson. Many people seem to have forgotten the fact that Britain received a lot of money from the EU for various projects. This fatal decision could eventually lead to devolution if Scotland becomes independent and the United Kingdom will cease to exist. Absolute lunacy.

[educatingfool]

If anyone in the UK believes that the worst has passed, you better hold to something solid, because this is just the beginning of a downfall.

[Blue_rd]

So many people had very strong opinions about things they didn’t fully understand. They got what they voted for and still don’t realise it.