Britain’s referendum on EU membership started life on the fringes of politics as Ukip policy and as a minority obsession on the right of the Conservative party. It became a mainstream proposition when David Cameron foolishly saw it as a price worth paying for Tory party unity in the face of Ukip, a decision he must now regret bitterly, though not as bitterly as the rest of us. That’s because the 23 June vote is the event on which the immediate future of British politics and the economy rests – not to mention the integrity of the country itself and the wider stability of Europe. It presents the most wide-ranging danger to Britain in many decades.
But first things first. If you do not want to live in a country in the mould of Nigel Farage, you have until midnight on Tuesday to ensure – absolutely ensure – that you are registered to vote on 23 June. The same applies, to be fair, even if you want to live in a country in the image of Mr Farage.
If you are British, Irish or a Commonwealth citizen with leave to reside in the UK, and you are on the electoral register, you will probably have a vote in the referendum already – but check it now if you are not sure. If you are British, Irish or a Commonwealth citizen and you are not on the register, check as soon as you read this, and get yourself on the register today if you are entitled to be there. This applies in particular to under-25s, the people who will live longest with the consequences of the decision made on 23 June. Almost one in three under-25s are not on the register when they could be and should be. If you are under 25, check it now. If you are older, make sure any under-25 whom you meet gets on their own case. Don’t let them put it off. Registering online at aboutmyvote.co.uk only takes about five minutes. Do it.
Registering and voting is important in its own right. But it also matters because there is a real and present danger, as shown in some recent opinion polls, that the leave campaign is moving into the lead. The contest is far from over, but this is now the business end of the campaign. It is time to be completely serious about what is at stake and utterly clear about the consequences of the respective outcomes. For those of us who wish Britain to remain in the EU, because it is where we are best off and where we belong, warts and all, this means focusing on the fundamental question: should Britain be in Europe or out of Europe in current, not hypothetical, circumstances. Everything else is a side issue right now.
The remain campaign has been criticised by its outright Tory opponents – no surprise there – and by many, not Tories, who cannot bring themselves to support a cause backed by Mr Cameron. Some of these objections are overdone – there is nothing wrong in principle with Labour campaigning with Tories on issues of shared concern providing they make their own Labour case for Europe as well (as happened in the 1975 referendum). But it is time for the remain campaign to return to key messages now, not lob rocks indiscriminately at the leave side.
Those key messages are not complicated. There is strength in numbers, whether in trade, jobs, security and borders, that leaving will never achieve. Leaving would be a leap in the dark, in both economic and political terms. European union has kept the peace in a continent long damaged by war and tyranny; let’s keep it that way. It is better to be inside helping make the rules than outside having to submit to them. Don’t put the unity of our country at risk by pushing Scotland towards the exit door. Think about the consequences in both halves of Ireland. Leaving makes a social-democratic Britain and Europe less likely and a Farage-style Britain and Europe far more likely.
The next two weeks will be tough and tense. Britain is faced with a danger. But there is no need to panic. The case for leaving is a web of fantasies, some sinister. The case for remaining in the EU is still compelling. Your vote matters. So make sure you and yours are registered.
