This week will see the start of the the UK-EU summit and to mark the occasion, British Future has released new research which finds firm public support for the proposed youth mobility scheme allowing 18-30-year old’s to be able to study, train, work or travel within EU countries and young people from the EU to work and study in the UK.
Key priorities for the UK-EU summit in Brussels, will be security, defence and trade but migration and youth mobility are most likely to be on the agenda.
The new research from British Future today finds that there is strong public support for the proposed EU scheme that would allow 18-30-year old’s to be able to study, train, work, or travel within EU countries for up to two years.
- Strong support for the youth mobility scheme (63%) and low opposition (14%), including with two-thirds of Conservatives (65%) and those Labour voters now planning to vote elsewhere. Even a plurality of Reform voters supports it (42% to 31%).
- Around half the public wants closer cooperation with Europe across a range of issues including immigration for work and study, asylum, trade, and defence, with only 1 in 5 or less wanting the UK to distance ourselves further.
In-depth research by British Future for the 2023 report ‘Beyond Brexit: Public perspectives on the future UK-EU relationship,’ found that 52% of the public would like the UK to have a closer relationship with the EU, with just 12% preferring a more distant relationship and 27% the status quo. Asked which relationship was most important for peace, stability and prosperity, almost half of respondents (48%) ranked the EU first, above the US (27%) and Commonwealth (25%). The public was also keen not to re-open Brexit divisions and disputes, with 59% saying they would welcome a less heated debate about the UK’s future relationship with the EU in our politics and our society.
Sunder Katwala, Director of British Future, said:
“As Prime Minister of post-Brexit Britain, Keir Starmer has public permission to strengthen ties with the EU in the UK’s interests. Doing that isn’t going to send people back to the Brexit trenches.
“The politics of this parliament, in a world of Trump and Putin, gives Starmer the space to make deals with our friends.”
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