How Much Did Brexit Actually Cost Britain?

June 18, 2026 at 9:09 PM UTC

It’s only been a decade, but June 23, 2016, is likely to go down as one of the most consequential days in Britain’s long history. It was the day the UK’s membership in the European Union was put to a definitive in-out vote that would fundamentally reshape the nation’s political, economic and diplomatic future. By a 52% to 48% margin and after a bitter campaign that left behind a polarized country, the British public opted to leave.

The referendum was called by then-Prime Minister David Cameron to settle a long-running debate within the Conservative Party, one that began when the UK joined the European Economic Community in 1973. Cameron framed the vote as necessary to end a “poisoning” of British politics. Instead, the shock result redivided the UK political landscape along completely new lines. In this mini-documentary, we show the price Britain has paid for that decision over the past decade — politically, socially and economically.