Brexit Brain Drain: Professionals Wave Goodbye, Head to Europe

There are no concrete statistics on how many Europeans have left the U.K. since the Brexit referendum in June 2016

Britain may still be a member of the E.U., but many of the skilled Europeans who currently call the U.K. home are reconsidering their futures. Around 3 million Europeans live in the United Kingdom, NBC News reported.

Last month, British Prime Minister Theresa May said that it was a priority to protect E.U. citizens' rights and that an agreement with the bloc was being negotiated. However, her government has resisted calls to unilaterally guarantee their rights.

“The U.K. has become a significantly less attractive place for people with high skills as well as low skills,” said Jonathan Portes, a professor of economics at King's College London and a senior fellow at the U.K. in a Changing Europe, an initiative based at the college. “There is a psychological effect that people feel. They see it as a symbolic rejection and there is uncertainty about the future. That makes people here feel that returning to Europe is more attractive.”

There are no concrete statistics on how many Europeans have left the U.K. since the Brexit referendum in June 2016.

Contact Us