Support for EU membership ‘at highest level since 1991 with most Brits wanting to stay in’
The EU, think of the £36 billion linked to CAP under the new programme, has a very significant impact on rural communities. I have seen lots of analysis about the previous potential party affiliations of those who have turned against Europe but nothing by way of a thorough-going spatial analysis. I have met many people who assume rural England is naturally anti-European. I wonder if this article, along with the many food processors in my part of the world who welcome EU migrant workers, might prove that such a simplistic assumption is mis-founded. Before you take the liberty of assuming a particular personal standpoint here, I will make it very clear here and now that I am interested in raising the issue of the range of political views about the EU in rural England, not declaring a personal allegiance one way or another. The article tells us:
Ukip’s recent clean-up at the European Elections, the swipes it seems to be making on the foundations of the Conservative Party and its clear populist style has, it appears, not made a dent in the level of support Britons have for EU membership.
In fact, new research by IpsosMori suggests that support for the European Union (EU) has grown and is at its highest since 1991, shattering perceptions that the UK is edging closer towards a swift exit from the single market.
The sample group had been asked which way they would vote should a referendum on EU membership be offered to them now.
Fifty-six per cent said they would stay in the EU – up from 44 per cent in 2012.
Thirty-six per cent said they would ‘get out’ – down from 48 per cent in 2012, while eight per cent said they didn’t know which way they would sway.