Tory voters say Brexit has failed and damaged UK economy

Ahead of Kemi Badenoch’s closing speech at Conservative Party conference, polling by YouGov for Best for Britain reveals that people who say they intend to vote Conservative at the next general election are now more than twice as likely to consider Brexit a failure for the UK (46%) compared to a success (22%).

Brexit has failed

Brexit, a cornerstone of Tory policy since the 2016 referendum, is also much more likely to be considered a failure (38%) than a success (24%) by GE2024 Tory voters, the polling reveals. After being widely credited with sweeping Boris Johnson to power in 2019, the findings suggest a significant shift in opinion over Brexit within the Conservative Party, with Brexit-supporting voters switching their backing away from the Tories, to Reform UK.

Remarkably, even Reform UK supporters are split three ways on this question, with one third (33%) viewing it as a failure, and the same number saying it is neither a success nor a failure. Just over a quarter (28%) of those intending to vote Reform UK at the next election said they viewed Brexit as a success. This suggests a shift from those who voted Reform UK at the 2024 general election, of whom just a quarter (25%) say they view the UK’s exit from the EU as a mishap, versus almost a third (32%) who see it as a success, and slightly more (35%) seeing it as neither.

Why is Brexit seen as a failure

Of current Conservative supporters who think Brexit – which slashed UK GDP by 4%* and wiped £40 billion from the Treasury’s annual budget** – is a failure, half (51%) cite its economic impact as the primary reason with a similar number (50%) saying it damaged our ability to trade with Europe.

The next most commonly given reasons by current Conservative supporters for viewing Brexit as a failure were that it damaged our relationship with other European countries (43%), and it did not result in any opportunities, such as extra NHS funding (37%). Almost one-third of current Tory supporters who deem Brexit to have failed say that leaving the EU had made the UK more isolated on the world stage (32%) and made bills go up in the UK (32%).

Similarly, among GE2024 Tory voters who consider Brexit to be a failure, almost half (46%) say it damaged the economy and hurt trade with Europe. More than two fifths (41%) say it damaged our relationship with other European nations, and just under two fifths (39%) cite the fact it did  not result in any opportunities, i.e. extra NHS funding, for their view that Brexit had failed.

Who’s to blame?

When asked who they blame for Brexit, more than two-thirds (68%) of current Tory supporters who think leaving the EU was a failure say they hold Boris Johnson responsible. More than three-fifths (62%) blame David Cameron, and only slightly fewer (58%) identified Reform UK leader Nigel Farage as responsible for the failure of Brexit, the highest of any current party leader. Closely behind came Liz Truss (47%), while half (50%) hold Theresa May responsible.

The poll

Commissioned by Best for Britain: all figures, unless otherwise stated, are from YouGov Plc. Total sample size was 4,368 adults. Fieldwork was undertaken between 5th – 10th September 2025. The survey was carried out online. The figures have been weighted and are representative of all GB adults (aged 18+).

Data tables are published by YouGov.