Brexit poll: Britons now support second EU referendum by 16-point margin

A joint survey conducted by The Guardian and ICM shows that British voters now favour a second Brexit referendum by a 16-point margin.

The 5,000-person survey found that 47% of those asked wanted a final vote on Brexit once the terms were known, while 34% do not want to revisit the question. The Guardian reported that, excluding the remaining 19% who said they did not have a view on the matter, support for a second referendum now has a 58% to 42% lead.

Demand for a second vote comes from both sides of the Brexit divide, with a quarter of Leave voters in favour of returning to the polls to have their say on a final deal.

Overall, the mid-January poll shows a small but solid move towards Remain over recent months, with 51% now wishing to stay in the EU – a closer margin than the 52% to 48% recorded in the referendum itself.

Alex Turk, a senior research executive at ICM Unlimited, said: "On the results of this poll of 5,000, the result of a second EU referendum would be far from a foregone conclusion."

Additional findings include that 43% of those surveyed are worried that Brexit will have a negative impact on the economy and just over half believing it could have a negative impact on the "British way of life".

The poll showed that 32% think Brexit will have a positive effect on the economy, down from 38% in February 2017.

There are also signs that more Labour voters are open to a re-vote, with 9% of the party's Leave voters switching to remain, and stronger support for a second referendum in marginal seats that elsewhere, The Guardian said.

Demographic and geographic divides, however, have strengthened. Young voters were found to be 17% more likely than before to support remain, while the over-65s were more determined to leave than before. Scottish voters wanted to double down on their Remain vote, while the Leave camp is holding steady in Wales and part of England.

This new poll shows that support for a second referendum has grown over the new year. A poll from December 2017 indicated that 5% of voters wanted the UK to leave the EU regardless of the outcome of negotiations, 32% wanted a second referendum and 10% favoured deciding via a parliamentary vote.

The uncertain direction of the Brexit negotiations and resulting government infighting are likely to have persuaded some voters that a second referendum is in the UK's best interests.