Britain has turned against Brexit, according to the biggest ever poll of polls.
YouGov analysis for the Evening Standard shows that 204 out of 226 polls since July 2017 have shown Remain ahead, with just seven for Leave, and 15 ties.
So far this year, just one poll has put Leave ahead, compared to 74 for staying in the EU.
Parliament v the People
The results appear to undermine the idea, being fuelled by No 10 chief adviser Dominic Cummings, that Brexit is turning into a “Parliament v the People” clash.
Anthony Wells, director of political research at YouGov, said: “The polling evidence is concrete. The overwhelming majority of questions asking people if Brexit is right or wrong, or if they would now vote Remain or Leave, show a lead for Remain, and have done for over two years.
“The characterisation of the situation as People vs Parliament doesn’t really stand up when the public are split over Brexit.
“It is more a case of half the public vs half of Parliament.”
53 to 47
The study shows that at the start of 2017 quitting the EU was ahead, by 51 per cent to 49 per cent, once “don’t knows” were excluded.
However, the figures were reversed by the end of the year. In the first six months of 2018, Remain was ahead by 52 to 48, for the rest of the year by 53 to 47.
This lead grew to 54 to 46 in the first six months of 2019, with the gap narrowing slightly afterwards to 53 to 47.
The drift against Brexit is believed to have been driven by slightly more Leave than Remain voters changing their minds, particularly in Labour areas.
It is also influenced by demographic changes with more young people, who tend to support staying in the EU, becoming eligible to vote, and elderly people, who voted out in larger numbers, passing away.
Related: Donald Tusk tells Boris Johnson: “You don’t want a deal”
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