UNITED KINGDOM — The Guardian revisited five bellwether constituencies initially reported on during the 2016 EU referendum campaign to assess current public views on Brexit. These constituencies included Torridge and West Devon, Ceredigion, Banff and Buchan, and Romford.

Torridge and West Devon voted to leave the EU by 57.0% in 2016. Tony Rutherford, a business owner in Appledore who has run his business since 1979, voted to leave the EU to save the British fishing industry. Rutherford appeared on a Ukip poster during the 2016 referendum campaign. He stated that the UK fishing fleet achieved "barely any" increase in fishing opportunities under the deal negotiated by Boris Johnson. Rutherford said exporting into France requires VAT registration in France, which involves employing a French accountant at a cost of £2,000 per month. He noted that a health certificate costs £85 per shipment, and a transport company charges £245 per shipment for import documents. Rutherford stated that every shipment incurs an extra cost of £330 and shipping three times a week costs an additional £1,000. He said Brexit-related costs amounted to £70,000 for his husband-and-wife team. His first post-Brexit shipment of ray and dover sole, valued at £47,000, was shipped on January 4. Rutherford said this load was held up for five days and was ruined. Additional export costs for his business began on January 1, 2021. He added that a health certificate is 16 sheets long, with eight sheets in English and eight in French. Rutherford stated that missing one digit of a 10-digit code on a health certificate results in the shipment being condemned. His business has lost about eight loads since Brexit, with values ranging from £15,000 to £50,000. Rutherford received £11,000 from a government compensation scheme. He stated that he regrets his vote to leave the EU "one hundred per cent."

Ceredigion voted to remain in the EU by 54.6% in 2016. The University of Wales, Lampeter, has since closed. Ben Lake, the current MP for Ceredigion Preseli, stated that upland sheep farmers are more dependent on subsidies than arable farms. Lake added that agricultural funding cycles used to run in five- to seven-year cycles, and now "two years is a luxury." He also stated that most lamb exports still go to the EU, but farmers now require health and sanitary certificates and checks. Plaid Cymru leads Wales after winning the Senedd election in May, and the party achieved its best general election result in 2024. Lake stated that Brexit drew attention to constitutional matters and that "people have realised Plaid Cymru will stand up for Wales" since Brexit. He also stated that the current setup with a heavily centralized government in Westminster "does not work for Wales, north-east England, or Cornwall."

Banff and Buchan voted to remain by 54.0% in the 2016 EU referendum. David Milne, who was the chair of the Scottish White Fish Producers Association in May 2016, stated in May 2016 that he hoped Brexit would allow the fishing industry to manage its own destiny. Milne stated that control was the main appeal of Brexit for him. He said that nearly 99% of fishermen voted for Brexit because they wanted more control. Fishermen wanted to manage quotas and effort and have more say over what happened in their waters, Milne stated. He added that the promise of more control over waters has "not happened." Scottish fishers have continued to voluntarily close spawning grounds in Scottish waters to rejuvenate cod stocks. Milne stated that EU boats now sail north to exploit waters where Scottish fishers voluntarily closed spawning grounds. He added that EU vessels from Holland are coming to Fair Isle and Shetlands to catch cod. The constituency of Banff and Buchan no longer exists due to boundary changes in 2024.

Romford voted to leave the EU by 69.2% in 2016. Reform UK took control of Havering council in local elections last month. The Conservative Party lost all seats on Havering council in the local elections last month.