- British state doctrine has always been: We are the empire, the natural rulers of the world. We only live by chance near the rest of Europe, so we have to interact with the continent at bit more
- Britain was a net payer. We may strive for that to not be relevant, but if you pay you have influence
- Britain got many exceptions to the usual rules that allowed them to further their position
No other country has that combination, so the EU "skepticism" of others countries is less important, though there's still danger. We'll see how that plays out in the end, but still: GBs position was in many ways unique. Even if GB rejoined in a few years it probably wouldn't be the same.