This morning's Ipsos poll shows that 54% of Brits think Brexit harmed the UK’s standing in the world. That might be true – but what has the world been thinking about Britain for the past long eight years? And is it at odds with the image we have of ourselves?
It might not feel like it watching the day-to-day political fallout in the UK, but some measures suggest the world has a high opinion of Britain. The British Council’s latest Global Perceptions survey – which polls the opinions of just over 19,000 young people from the G20 nations – found Britain was the second most attractive country in the world, after Italy – higher than the score in spring 2016, and in 2021.
Brits at home might feel the UK’s image is plummeting, but there’s some evidence young people globally see the country as not just appealing – but trustworthy too. The UK ranked second for trust in its government and its people, and first for trust in its institutions, in the same survey.
What explains the discrepancy? It may be that while Brits follow the chaotic politicking of the post-Brexit years close-up, others overseas see the UK through a wider lens. Relatively open, democratic institutions, with a lack of everyday bribery and corruption are not found everywhere.
Of course, not everyone sees it this way. There is evidence the UK’s image has been damaged in the past eight years. The UK received its lowest ever score in Transparency International’s ‘Perceptions of Corruption’ Index this month, sitting at 20th in the global ranking which draws from expert and business leader opinions.
A study from the University of Zurich found being exposed to news about Brexit’s political fallout made some Europeans view Britain’s experience as a cautionary tale, which in turn strengthened their support of the EU.
And a University of Manchester study looked at how both British and foreign diplomats at the UN viewed a post-Brexit Britain. While many respected the country’s diplomacy skills, they felt it lacked strategic direction, with one interviewee saying the country had ‘lost our marbles’.
Does it matter what people think of us? Arguably, yes. The journalist Gideon Rachman has said leaders like Xi Jinping took the West’s disordered response to COVID, Brexit turmoil and the election of Trump, as signs liberal democracies don’t work fully in the modern age and would soon falter. Perceptions of whether our systems work at home affects the way states interact with the UK overseas.
The academic Joseph Nye coined the term ‘soft power’ to refer to a country’s ability to achieve its preferred outcomes by being seen as attractive to others. In 2007, then Chinese President Hu Jintao told his party that the country had to increase its soft power, and China has been investing in improving its image since.
There’s a case the UK tends to lean a bit too much on having a pleasant international image and needs to invest in hard power, including its defence budget, in a more dangerous world. But we shouldn’t underestimate the value of global appeal.
