Majority of Germans think UK will not benefit long term from Brexit, Euronews survey reveals

People take photographs of Manneken Pis landmark dressed in the colours of the German flag next to an EU flag in downtown Brussels
People take photographs of Manneken Pis landmark dressed in the colours of the German flag next to an EU flag in downtown Brussels Copyright Francisco Seco/Copyright 2020 The Associated Press.All rights reserved
Copyright Francisco Seco/Copyright 2020 The Associated Press.All rights reserved
By Euronews
Share this articleComments
Share this articleClose Button
Copy/paste the article video embed link below:Copy to clipboardCopied

Nearly 60% of respondents in Germany said Brexit would not provide the UK with any long-term benefits. Just 30% of French people surveyed thought the same.

ADVERTISEMENT

A majority of Germans believe the UK will not reap any long term benefits from leaving the European Union, a Euronews-commissioned survey has revealed.

Nearly 60% of respondents in Germany said that Brexit would not provide the UK with any gains further down the line.

But there is less confidence in other countries.

Only around a third in France (30%) and Italy (36%) think the same. Nearly half (47%) of Brits surveyed believe there will be long-term benefits from Brexit.

Euronews
Will Britain benefit from leaving the EU in the long term, even if it suffers in the short term?Euronews

Views about whether EU membership has been good or bad for their country are more or less evenly split in Italy and France, among those who see it as positive, negative or don't know. In Germany, the prevailing opinion, at 47%, is that being a member of the bloc has been beneficial.

Euronews
Has being a member of the EU had a positive or negative effect on your country?Euronews

On the basic question of EU membership, some are more enthusiastic than others. Germans are happy to stay, by a majority of 64%. In France, just over half want to remain, while in Italy those committed to the union are slightly eclipsed by a combination of leavers and the unsure.

Euronews
If there was a referendum in your country on EU membership how would you vote?Euronews

Ultimately, attitudes to the EU among members states are a question of trust. People at a national level vote for members of the European Parliament, but for many, Brussels and its institutions still seem remote.

That may explain why the majority view in all three countries is that the EU doesn't have their best interests at heart. More than half of Italians feel that way, as do 46% of the French. The Germans are the most trusting, with 40% seeing Brussels as well-intentioned.

Euronews
Do you trust that the EU has your country's best interests at heart?Euronews

The surveys were carried out on behalf of Euronews by Redfield & Wilton Strategies. Sample sizes of 1,500 were used in each country.

Share this articleComments

You might also like

Rashford starts petition over UK's free school meal extension refusal

Little optimism over post-Brexit trade deal as EU gears up for summit

'Slaughtered': UK farmers protest post-Brexit rules and trade deals