“Everybody thought the EU was about people coming into the country … no-one told of us the benefits”.

Loads of people told them about the benefits - a million people marched in London talking about nothing else. T

More than six million signed a petition that got lost.

Also no parties that look to bring back child labour or reduce the age of consent or invade France

I guess the fact that most people wanted to join doesn’t matter ?

if you wanted to, I think Labour were your choice

Loads of people told them about the benefits - a million people marched in London talking about nothing else. They chose to believe Nigel Farage and his blooming bus and the morally bankrupt Boris Johnson.

Having believed Farage’s lies once they’re now doubling down. I don’t understand why but maybe it’s because people hate to be wrong….

Yeah like Hobson's choice the n. No anti EU party to vote for

I have done some reading on this and the economy does gain from immigration, but in terms of the people in it, there are winners and losers.

Newsflash:

everything has winners and losers.Joining the EEC ? Joining the EC ? Joining the EU ? Leaving the EU ? Joining the gym ? Buying a weekly shop ?

All events that produce winners and losers.

I am struggling to find a word for a person who cannot see that. I wonder if any other posters can help ?

Never has the EU accepted the vote of the Irish people until they vote correctly.

Well that's not entirely true is it? You're falling for Brexit propaganda. Ireland voted against treaties forcing their government to renegotiate certain terms of the treaty and then it went back to the electorate to ratify. That's a positive democratic process. Lisbon treaty example:

Following the initial "No" vote, the Irish government secured legal guarantees from the EU regarding taxation, neutrality, and abortion, which contributed to a "Yes" vote (67.1%) in the second referendum in October 2009

... and yet...
Key trends in EU public support as of late 2025 include:

• High Confidence: 52% of Europeans trust the EU, the highest level since 2007.
• Benefits & Stability: 74% believe their country benefits from membership. 67% view the EU as a source of stability in a troubled world.
• Priorities: Top priorities for citizens include ensuring peace and security (42%), job creation (26%), and managing migration (24%).
• Defence Support: 79% support a common defense and security policy.
• Approval Trends: Support for the euro is at a record high of 74% within the eurozone.
• Exceptions: While support is generally high,, significant negativity exists in countries like France and Italy, although a majority in those nations would still vote to remain in the EU.
• Future Outlook: 59% to 66% of Europeans are optimistic about the future of the EU.

What would our politicians do for public support like this?

Thats illogical, you re just digging yourself a hole now.....

....how can you vote for an anti EU party before the EU was formed?

We had plenty of opportunities to vote for UKip post 1993 but never did, as well you know.

It wasn't until that shit stirring cnut Farage came along, assisted by Boris Johnson and his ridiculous lying stories about the EU that gradually the EU became an issue

Sometimes you just fully deserve who you vote for.

Brexit completely fucked us over. The sooner we rejoin, the better.

The EU isn’t perfect

but throwing the baby out with the bath water springs to mind

Every single EU treaty that has been put to a vote of an electorate has been rejected by that electorate. To the extent only Ireland is permitted to vote on them now. These are the Treaties that create all the freedom of movement and trade. But people think it is just British racists that don't want the model the EU has become. The Danes rejected Amstersam Treaty. Others were going to, but they stopped the voting. Ireland has rejected all of them but they are then bribed and have to have a 2nd vote to get them passed. Never has the EU accepted the vote of the Irish people until they vote correctly.
So don't eulogise the EU as some all encompassing utopia of freedom and trade that all none racist Europeans want to be part of. It isn't and they don't.

Wonder why uk couldnt do that back in 93 then

Yes other countries have had leave campaigns, referenda on membership etc. Norway has had at least one referendum on joining, but has (sensibly imo) stayed out!

I have done some reading on this and the economy does gain from immigration, but in terms of the people in it, there are winners and losers.

So it can absolutely be true that the economy gained but individuals and groups lost out.

It's evident from the article. What benefit of growth in London and the SE accrues to the remote area? Not much apart from national health and education systems (that didn't keep up with growth anyway) and er, a new rail station - so they can leave the area quicker?!

BREXIT was as a result of the failure of the political establishment to address the needs of marginalised communuties and communicate how remaining in the EU would help address them, along with a genuine fear of older people of changing cultures within British society. Since it happened all we have had is, first, it wasn't valid because not everyone turned out, then let us vote again to get the right vote, then delay after delay in implementing a democratic vote and watering it down, then an ongoing campaign of how stupid all those voters were and we told you so and my child can not study and work in Paris or passport control in Spain because of you (that will worry those in Salford trying to feed their kids day to day). So instead of trying to implement measures and find opportunuties and leadership the situation offers we just have this continual labelling and 'look what your ignorance has caused'.
And you wonder why people are voting Reform. They are still being ignored by a smug self rightous elite who now can increase their smugness because they think were right all along.
The real failure of BREXIT is the failure of our society and political leadership to address the challenges it poses to us and a proper accepatance of a democratic decision and why it happened, by whole sections of our 'liberal' establishment. There is an absolute poverty of ideas from our leaders and those who voted remain other than 'we told you so'.
There have been plenty of democratic decisions that have impacted dispropotionaly, Miners and Mrs Thatcher springs to mind, but they were the decisions at the time. It has shown democracy is just a theory for certain people that is only acceptable if people vote the right way.

Most likely. People not asked if we wanted to join the eu andseems govt justgot carried along with the other countries. No idea if the people in other countries got a say

There was no exit mechanism though? It might have been slightly less painful at those points but it certainly wouldn't have been straightforward.

Or being complacent - thinking the other side were "thick"?

That's how centralised payment in-transfer out systems work.

The alternative would be local areas spend only what they can raise/borrow.

The outer London boroughs receive less "back" in spending than they pay in tax, compared to the inner London ones but overall London makes enough surplus that it can subsidise other parts of the country.

Additionally when we were in the EU we were paying for a second lot of bureaucracy but we could also draw on various member-only funding sources.

By 2010, less than 9000 people tried to get into the UK via Lorry or Train

I think you mean by 2010 less than 9000 people were caught trying to get into the UK via lorry out train..

What the signs wouldnt say is that yThe UK was paying more into the EU to get SOME of it back as funding. Cant blame brexit for the lack of funding now as its the UK govt decidimg not to fund stuff

I didn't vote for Brexit but I had no idea how much funding came from the EU or for what. I've seen signs in other countries, including Wales that say 'this was funded by the EU' but I've never seen them in England. The push of 'information' seemed to be heavily weighted on the side of the pro Brexit lot with the Remainers not really seeming to have much to say or at least only saying it very quietly.

It was much too big a thing for anyone to be able to predict how it would go so the Brexiteers just told everyone what they wanted to hear and people voted for that. The whole thing was completely ridiculous.

Farage, just like Trump, is fabulous at mustering up the populist vote and people fall for it over and over again.

For the government yes. Not for the people