Both British and EU citizens are in favour of strengthening EU-UK ties due to a changing international security context, a new survey shows.
The poll, conducted by the European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR), has also revealed that UK citizens are more reluctant to follow in America's lead following Donald Trump's presidential victory. 55% favour a "closer" relationship with the EU in the context of Russia's invasion of Ukraine and growing threats from China.
When asked who the UK government should prioritise relations with, 50% of Britons favour Europe over the US (17%).
ECFR states that "many of the Brexit-era divisions within Britain have abated, with both 'Leavers' and 'Remainers' now prepared to countenance free movement in exchange for a stronger economic relationship with the EU."
Trump and Putin: 'Double-hammer blow'
Among Europeans, there is an openness to granting the UK "special access" to the EU single market and access to the bloc’s research programmes, in exchange for deeper security cooperation.
Data from different Member States suggest that this trend prevails in the majority of countries. Participants in Poland (54%), Germany (53%), Spain (43%), Italy (42%) and France (41%) all agreed that the EU should grant the UK special access to certain parts of the European single market to secure a closer security-based relationship.
"Donald Trump's election and Putin's full-scale invasion of Ukraine have hit British and European politics like a double hammer blow," said ECFR co-founder and director Mark Leonard. "The Brexit era divisions have faded and both European and British citizens realise that they need each other to get safer. Governments now need to catch up with public opinion and offer an ambitious reset."
