The campaign to keep Britain in the European Union regained its lead in two opinion polls published on June 18, giving a boost to Prime Minister David Cameron who is battling to avoid a historic “Out” vote in Thursday’s referendum.
A
third poll also showed a change in momentum in favour of the “In” camp
and Cameron got the backing of a leading newspaper when the
right-leaning Mail on Sunday urged its readers to vote to remain in the
EU.
“We
are now in the final week of the referendum campaign and the swing back
towards the status quo appears to be in full force,” Anthony Wells, a
director with polling firm YouGov, said.
Financial
markets around the world are on edge ahead of the June 23 referendum.
Recent polls showing the “Out” camp in the lead have weakened sterling
and helped wipe billions of pounds off stock markets as investors
worried not only about the hit to Britain’s economy and its trading
partners, but also about the implications of a so-called Brexit for the
EU’s future.
A
YouGov poll for the Sunday Times newspaper showed support for Britain
staying in the EU had restored a narrow 44-43 percent lead over the
“Out” campaign.
That
poll was based on interviews conducted on Thursday and Friday, but the
Sunday Times said the shift did not reflect the fatal attack on a
British lawmaker on Thursday which led to the suspension of referendum
campaigning.
Instead,
the bounce in support for “In” was more a reflection of growing
concerns among voters about the economic impact of a so-called Brexit,
it said.
Cameron
and his finance minister, George Osborne, have tried repeatedly to
focus voters on the economic risks of leaving the EU’s single market,
pointing to forecasts of a hit from the International Monetary Fund, the
Bank of England and most private economists.
Another YouGov
poll reported on Saturday but based on surveys conducted on Wednesday
and Thursday showed the lead of the “Out” campaign had narrowed to two
points from as wide as seven points less than a week ago.
A
third poll on Saturday, by polling firm Survation, gave the “In”
campaign a three-point lead, reversing a similar lead for “Out” in a
Survation poll published as recently as Thursday.
A
fourth poll, by Opinium, showed the two camp were running neck and neck
with 44 percent support each. That poll was conducted between Tuesday
and Friday.
While
Cameron got support from the Mail on Sunday’s backing of the “In”
campaign, its rival The Sunday Times, which sells around half the number
of copies as the Mail on Sunday, said it was backing the “Out”
campaign.
The
Sunday Times urged voters to vote to leave the EU as a way to press for
deeper reform which might make the bloc more acceptable for Britain to
actually remain in after a second referendum, an idea floated by “Out”
campaigner Boris Johnson.
But
Cameron told the newspaper that there would no second chance to decide
Britain’s role in Europe. “This is an irreversible decision with very
bad consequences for the British economy,” he said in an interview.
Campaigning
was due to resume on Sunday after a suspension lasting more than two
days following the fatal attack on lawmaker Jo Cox, a member of the
opposition Labour Party and a strong supporter of Britain staying in the
EU.
The
man charged with her murder, Thomas Mair, gave his name as “death to
traitors, freedom for Britain” when he appeared in court on Saturday.