Ten years on, the case for rejoining grows stronger as campaigners gather for National Rejoin March 2026

Pro-European campaigners are gathering in London today (June 20) for the National Rejoin March 2026, marking a decade since the referendum that took the UK out of the European Union.

Participants are assembling at Temple Underground Station at midday before marching to Parliament Square, where a rally will begin at 2.30pm.

Among the headline speakers are former Labour leader and former European Commission vice-president Neil Kinnock, Liberal Democrat MP Layla Moran, Green MEP Terry Reintke, lawyer and commentator Shola Mos-Shogbamimu, European Movement UK chair Mike Galsworthy, campaigner Femi Oluwole, and anti-Brexit activist Steve Bray.

Reflecting on the ten years since the referendum, Kinnock described Brexit as an “unmitigated economic and political disaster.”

“Ten years on, everybody knows that Brexit has been an unmitigated economic and political disaster with higher inflation, flattened wages and underfunded public services,” he said.

“If anything else had inflicted this much harm on our country, the demand for change would be irresistible.”

While welcoming the government’s recent efforts to improve relations with the EU, Kinnock argued that a more ambitious goal is required.

“We have to work to rejoin and restore economic strength and political influence over our future. It won’t be easy or quick. But it is essential in the national interest.”

Peter Corr, co-founder of the National Rejoin March, said the unstable global situation underlines the original purpose of European integration.

“In the world as it is now, being so dangerous, it’s so important we remember why the EU exists.  It’s based on the simple idea that if countries are tied together in economics, trade and politics, it’s very unlikely they would ever go to war with each other again.  The peace project was a response to the 2nd World War and has been successful to this day.  We must bring it back together now.”

The last National Rejoin March took place in 2024, when tens of thousands of people travelled from across the UK, Europe and beyond to march from Park Lane to Parliament Square, demanding a route back into the European Union.

What makes this year’s anniversary particularly striking is that criticism of Brexit is no longer confined to traditionally pro-European voices. As the referendum’s tenth anniversary approached this week, even the Express, long nicknamed the “Brexpress” because of its enthusiastic support for Brexit, published a reader poll asking: “Would you vote for Brexit again?”

The accompanying article highlighted a series of uncomfortable economic realities. It cited research by economist Nicholas Bloom and the US National Bureau of Economic Research, which found that UK GDP per head is now between 6 and 8 percent lower than it would have been without Brexit. According to the study, the economic hit has been driven by long-term declines in business investment, productivity and private-sector employment. Business investment is estimated to be 12 – 18 percent lower than it would otherwise have been, while productivity and private-sector employment have both fallen by around 3 – 4 percent.

The fact that such findings are now being reported in a newspaper once synonymous with Brexit advocacy speaks to a wider change in public debate.

Ten years after the referendum, the argument is no longer about whether Brexit has imposed economic costs, but about what Britain should do in response.

For those marching through London today, the answer is clear: repairing relations with Europe is only the beginning. The ultimate goal remains rejoining the European Union.