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Backlash after Barack Obama EU referendum intervention | Backlash after Barack Obama EU referendum intervention |
(about 2 hours later) | |
US President Barack Obama has been accused of doing Downing Street's bidding - after he said the UK would be at "the back of the queue" for American trade deals if it left the EU. | US President Barack Obama has been accused of doing Downing Street's bidding - after he said the UK would be at "the back of the queue" for American trade deals if it left the EU. |
Mr Obama was criticised by pro-Brexit campaigners after he warned of the consequences of the UK leaving the EU. | Mr Obama was criticised by pro-Brexit campaigners after he warned of the consequences of the UK leaving the EU. |
UKIP's Nigel Farage said Mr Obama was "talking down Britain", while Tory Liam Fox said his views were "irrelevant". | UKIP's Nigel Farage said Mr Obama was "talking down Britain", while Tory Liam Fox said his views were "irrelevant". |
Mr Obama, on a three-day UK visit, will meet Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn later. | Mr Obama, on a three-day UK visit, will meet Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn later. |
His intervention came on his first full day in the UK and comes just weeks ahead of the 23 June in-out referendum. | His intervention came on his first full day in the UK and comes just weeks ahead of the 23 June in-out referendum. |
Speaking at a joint news conference with Prime Minister David Cameron, Mr Obama said the US "wants Britain's influence to grow - including within Europe". | Speaking at a joint news conference with Prime Minister David Cameron, Mr Obama said the US "wants Britain's influence to grow - including within Europe". |
"The UK is at its best when it's helping to lead a strong European Union. It leverages UK power to be part of the EU. | "The UK is at its best when it's helping to lead a strong European Union. It leverages UK power to be part of the EU. |
"I don't think the EU moderates British influence in the world, it magnifies it." | "I don't think the EU moderates British influence in the world, it magnifies it." |
BBC political correspondent Iain Watson said Mr Obama's message on trade was "very blunt" and "really upped the ante" in the referendum debate. | |
Leave campaigners responded angrily, with Mr Farage accusing the US president of doing Mr Cameron's "bidding" and talking down Britain. "I think that's shameful," he added. | |
Mr Fox said Mr Obama would be leaving the White House soon, and therefore his comments were "largely irrelevant". | |
He told BBC's Newsnight: "We heard 'you are our best friend, we have a special relationship, and you will get a punishment beating if you leave the EU'. | He told BBC's Newsnight: "We heard 'you are our best friend, we have a special relationship, and you will get a punishment beating if you leave the EU'. |
"This is very much the Downing Street refrain." | "This is very much the Downing Street refrain." |
Conservative MP Dominic Raab labelled Mr Obama a "lame-duck American president doing an old British friend a political favour". | Conservative MP Dominic Raab labelled Mr Obama a "lame-duck American president doing an old British friend a political favour". |
Downing Street rejected suggestions that lines had been fed to Mr Obama, saying the US president spoke for himself. | |
Meanwhile, another prominent Leave campaigner - former cabinet minister Iain Duncan Smith - has tried to move the referendum debate on to immigration. | |
In an article in the Daily Mail, he says the introduction of a national living wage - a move he supported while in government - will "surely lead to another stampede to our borders". | |
He adds: "To make the Living Wage work for British people, we need to be able to control the number of people coming in." | He adds: "To make the Living Wage work for British people, we need to be able to control the number of people coming in." |
Mr and Mrs Obama will spend the second full day of their visit in London on Saturday. | |
The US president will meet Labour leader Mr Corbyn and visit the Globe Theatre as part of the celebrations marking the 400th anniversary of Shakespeare's death. | |
EU referendum: In depth | EU referendum: In depth |
The UK's EU vote: All you need to know | The UK's EU vote: All you need to know |
EU for beginners: A guide | EU for beginners: A guide |
Is Britain safer in or out of the EU? | Is Britain safer in or out of the EU? |
A-Z guide to EU-speak | A-Z guide to EU-speak |
Who's who: The Vote Leave team | Who's who: The Vote Leave team |
Who's who: The Remain campaign | Who's who: The Remain campaign |