No, the United Kingdom is not currently rejoining the European Union.

 

Is the UK rejoining the EU?

No, the United Kingdom is not currently rejoining the European Union.

While public sentiment has notably shifted a decade after the 2016 referendum, both the political realities in London and the accession rules in Brussels prevent any immediate return. Instead of full membership, the UK and EU are pursuing a careful economic and regulatory "reset".

The Domestic Political Stance

• Government Policy: The ruling Labour government under Prime Minister Keir Starmer has firmly ruled out rejoining the EU, the Single Market, or the Customs Union, stating they are upholding the original Brexit mandate.
• The "Reset" Strategy: Instead of rejoining, the UK has passed legislation for "dynamic alignment" with certain EU rules. This lowers trading barriers for food and agricultural products, links carbon emissions trading systems, and returns the UK to the Erasmus+ scheme.
• Divided Views: While figures like London Mayor Sadiq Khan have urged the government to pledge to rejoin, other senior politicians caution that rejoining tomorrow would not magically fix the UK's core economic issues.

Public Opinion Shifts

• Polled Majorities: Ten years post-referendum, current polling from YouGov and Ipsos shows that roughly 55% to 58% of Britons support rejoining the EU.
• The Opt-Out Catch: This support evaporates if the UK cannot keep its previous special terms (like keeping the Pound Sterling and skipping the Schengen border-free zone). Support for rejoining drops to just 35% if the UK is forced to adopt the Euro currency.

The View From Brussels

• European Openness: Prominent EU leaders, including European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and former Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier, have expressed openness to the UK returning to the European fold eventually.
• Strict Accession Rules: If the UK ever applied, it would have to go through the standard Article 49 application process like any other nation. This requires unanimous approval from all 27 EU member states.
• Fear of Instability: European diplomats remain highly cautious. With the UK having seen multiple prime ministers since Brexit, the EU wants to see a durable, permanent British consensus before entering years of complex negotiations.

Political analysts and former leaders note that while a return is possible in the long term—driven primarily by younger generations—any realistic timeline for the UK to actually rejoin the EU would take at least a decade