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EU referendum: Cameron, Corbyn and Johnson hit campaign trail - live EU referendum: Cameron, Corbyn and Johnson hit campaign trail - live
(35 minutes later)
2.46pm BST
14:46
Daniel Boffey
Jeremy Corbyn is asked if Labour has a “specific problem” with anti-Semitism - a question that is echoed in part by a second audience member at the Progress event.
He doesn’t address the question directly: “Anti-Semitism is wrong and has to be totally opposed and totally defeated, period. Okay? Obviously I’m fully aware of the reports and allegations that have been made. Members have been suspended for investigation. I decided that the best thing to do was to appoint Shami Chakrabarti and David Letterman to set up an inquiry.”
The session closes with Progress chair Alison McGovern thanking Corbyn for attending.
2.36pm BST
14:36
Daniel Boffey
On the subject of abuse, Jeremy Corbyn says he welcomes a “proper debate” in the party:
I sometimes read the papers to realise that people are saying really unkind things about me. They are quite rude really sometimes. I don’t do it. I’m not getting in the gutter with those people.
Much of the abuse on Twitter is written after “a few jars”. He added: “Don’t do it.”
2.28pm BST
14:28
Daniel Boffey
The Labour leader is taking a few questions from the audience at the Progress conference. The first couple concern the disconnect constituents feel about Westminster politics, and the need to end the abusive debate going on within Labour.
Corbyn also says that devolution is important, but adds that devolution of taxation to regions is a “Tory trap”.
Updated
at 2.33pm BST
2.21pm BST
14:21
Daniel Boffey
Jeremy Corbyn ends his speech by saying that we are living through an exciting time both in Britain and the US, where new social and political forces are challenging the legacy of the Thatcher and Reagan years. That gets polite applause.
2.17pm BST
14:17
Daniel Boffey
It’s difficult to grasp the theme of Jeremy Corbyn’s speech to Progress. He has spoken briefly about the EU, moved on to the crisis in the steel industry and is now talking about human rights and the importance of not selling arms “to people who shoot at trade unionists on the street”.
Corbyn has a pop at those engaging in personal abuse, which earns his first laugh: “I don’t do any kind of personal abuse. I don’t do it and I don’t respond to it. If I did I wouldn’t have anything else to do in my life.”
2.05pm BST2.05pm BST
14:0514:05
Daniel BoffeyDaniel Boffey
Corbyn: high bar for ProgressCorbyn: high bar for Progress
There is generous applause for Jeremy Corbyn as he takes the stage at the Progress annual conference. He says it is the first time he has been invited to address the New Labour pressure group, which was set up 20 years ago.There is generous applause for Jeremy Corbyn as he takes the stage at the Progress annual conference. He says it is the first time he has been invited to address the New Labour pressure group, which was set up 20 years ago.
He notes that he had to be elected as the party’s leader to get an invite: “You guys set a pretty high bar.”He notes that he had to be elected as the party’s leader to get an invite: “You guys set a pretty high bar.”
However, there is muted reaction to Corbyn’s opening words about the EU and the need for the UK government to support the posted workers directive.He gets a warmer response for praising newly elected London mayor Sadiq Khan and attacking the Tory candidate Zac Goldsmith. Khan’s victory was a “total rejection of the dog whistle politics of Lynton Crosby”, the Tory spindoctor.However, there is muted reaction to Corbyn’s opening words about the EU and the need for the UK government to support the posted workers directive.He gets a warmer response for praising newly elected London mayor Sadiq Khan and attacking the Tory candidate Zac Goldsmith. Khan’s victory was a “total rejection of the dog whistle politics of Lynton Crosby”, the Tory spindoctor.
1.52pm BST1.52pm BST
13:5213:52
Cameron says Leave arguments ‘don’t stack up’Cameron says Leave arguments ‘don’t stack up’
More from David Cameron’s address earlier today in Witney. He says that none of the arguments put forward by the Leave campaigners “stack up”.More from David Cameron’s address earlier today in Witney. He says that none of the arguments put forward by the Leave campaigners “stack up”.
There is the argument that somehow we would be more sovereign, more independent. Would we be? If we still have to meet all the rules and regulations of the single market when we sell into it, but we have no say over those rules, how does that us more sovereign? How does that make us more independent? It would leave us rather powerless. How does it make us more independent and sovereign if the French prime minister, the Italian prime minister, the German chancellor are going to sit round a table in Europe and discuss the issues that affect us and our continent, and we not even in the room, how does that make us more sovereign? These arguments don’t stack up.There is the argument that somehow we would be more sovereign, more independent. Would we be? If we still have to meet all the rules and regulations of the single market when we sell into it, but we have no say over those rules, how does that us more sovereign? How does that make us more independent? It would leave us rather powerless. How does it make us more independent and sovereign if the French prime minister, the Italian prime minister, the German chancellor are going to sit round a table in Europe and discuss the issues that affect us and our continent, and we not even in the room, how does that make us more sovereign? These arguments don’t stack up.
1.45pm BST1.45pm BST
13:4513:45
The #BattleBus tour continues with @BorisJohnson and @LiamFoxMP speaking to activists in Bristol #TakeControl pic.twitter.com/TjXWTAlJv3The #BattleBus tour continues with @BorisJohnson and @LiamFoxMP speaking to activists in Bristol #TakeControl pic.twitter.com/TjXWTAlJv3
Boris has been a bit slack on the Twitter front, by the way - his last tweet was on 5 May...Boris has been a bit slack on the Twitter front, by the way - his last tweet was on 5 May...
1.40pm BST1.40pm BST
13:4013:40
Jeremy Corbyn has arrived at the TUC’s Congress House in central London for the Progress annual conference, Observer policy editor Daniel Boffey reports.Jeremy Corbyn has arrived at the TUC’s Congress House in central London for the Progress annual conference, Observer policy editor Daniel Boffey reports.
1.24pm BST1.24pm BST
13:2413:24
Former Labour leader Neil Kinnock is campaigning in Wales with shadow justice minister Jo Stevens.Former Labour leader Neil Kinnock is campaigning in Wales with shadow justice minister Jo Stevens.
Lost him canvassing in Pentwyn May 2015. Found today! Neil Kinnock & I are with the #InCrowd #LabourIn #StrongerIn pic.twitter.com/XqMaHOOpeOLost him canvassing in Pentwyn May 2015. Found today! Neil Kinnock & I are with the #InCrowd #LabourIn #StrongerIn pic.twitter.com/XqMaHOOpeO
1.05pm BST1.05pm BST
13:0513:05
More Eurovision-related campaign news arrives courtesy of Stronger In, which has issued a Community Meeting Supporter Pack Eurovision Party Special! (their exclamation mark, not mine).More Eurovision-related campaign news arrives courtesy of Stronger In, which has issued a Community Meeting Supporter Pack Eurovision Party Special! (their exclamation mark, not mine).
Download our essential #Eurovision pack ready for tonight - full of the facts you need to know: https://t.co/odbh5d7pCcDownload our essential #Eurovision pack ready for tonight - full of the facts you need to know: https://t.co/odbh5d7pCc
“The Eurovision Song Contest on Saturday 14th May will be a great opportunity to bring friends and family together for a fun party and to spread the word about the campaign. Eurovision celebrates all that is weird and wonderful about Europe, and we hope that you and your guests enjoy the fun, music and discussion!” it reads.“The Eurovision Song Contest on Saturday 14th May will be a great opportunity to bring friends and family together for a fun party and to spread the word about the campaign. Eurovision celebrates all that is weird and wonderful about Europe, and we hope that you and your guests enjoy the fun, music and discussion!” it reads.
Not sure that’s the sort of Eurovision party I want to go to this evening...Not sure that’s the sort of Eurovision party I want to go to this evening...
12.52pm BST12.52pm BST
12:5212:52
It’s a thumbs up from David Cameron in Oxfordshire as the remain campaign stages a claimed 1,000 events across the UK today.It’s a thumbs up from David Cameron in Oxfordshire as the remain campaign stages a claimed 1,000 events across the UK today.
There are over 1,000 #StrongerIn events this weekend showing what a truly cross-party, UK-wide campaign we are. pic.twitter.com/B2cuMChczBThere are over 1,000 #StrongerIn events this weekend showing what a truly cross-party, UK-wide campaign we are. pic.twitter.com/B2cuMChczB
12.30pm BST12.30pm BST
12:3012:30
Saturday’s EU referendum campaigning key events:Saturday’s EU referendum campaigning key events:
UpdatedUpdated
at 12.38pm BSTat 12.38pm BST
12.11pm BST12.11pm BST
12:1112:11
Thanks to Simon Richards, chief executive of something called the Freedom Association (a “non-partisan, centre-right, libertarian pressure group”, apparently) for giving me a chance to mention the Eurovision Song Contest, which is being held in Stockholm tonight.Thanks to Simon Richards, chief executive of something called the Freedom Association (a “non-partisan, centre-right, libertarian pressure group”, apparently) for giving me a chance to mention the Eurovision Song Contest, which is being held in Stockholm tonight.
The UK is a world leader in music & showbiz, but gets nowhere in Eurovision - just like in the EU. Let's rejoin the wider world #VoteLeaveThe UK is a world leader in music & showbiz, but gets nowhere in Eurovision - just like in the EU. Let's rejoin the wider world #VoteLeave
Of course the UK does not have a great record in the contest in recent years, with the most recent victory coming back in 1997 courtesy of Katrina and the Waves. Neither do the bookies rate this year’s entrants, Joe and Jake, with Sweden and Russia the favourites.Of course the UK does not have a great record in the contest in recent years, with the most recent victory coming back in 1997 courtesy of Katrina and the Waves. Neither do the bookies rate this year’s entrants, Joe and Jake, with Sweden and Russia the favourites.
Then again, would a shock UK win be some sort of cosmic sign that the rest of Europe really doesn’t want a Brexit?Then again, would a shock UK win be some sort of cosmic sign that the rest of Europe really doesn’t want a Brexit?
And if you still need convincing, read this piece by Martin Belam.And if you still need convincing, read this piece by Martin Belam.
UpdatedUpdated
at 12.45pm BSTat 12.45pm BST
12.00pm BST
12:00
This is an argument we haven’t heard thus far in the EU debate: a sharp fall in the number of pirate attacks off Somalia is “incontrovertible proof” that the union helps protect Britain.
That’s the claim made by shadow defence secretary Emily Thornberry, who highlights figures from the EU’s Operation Atalanta counter-piracy mission showing the number of attacks on ships fell from 176 in 2011 to just two in 2014 and none last year.
After visiting Atalanta’s base at Joint Forces Command in Northwood, west London, Thornberry said:
We all remember the havoc and fear being caused by piracy just a few years ago, including British citizens being taken hostage. The potential economic damage to the UK in terms of lost trade, higher insurance and other costs was huge. But now, as a result of Operation Atalanta, we have gone well over a year without an attack, and more than three years without any ships or crews being seized. That is not something we could have achieved on our own, and it is a powerful reminder that it is only through collaboration and co-operation with our European partners that we can tackle the shared international challenges we face.
11.44am BST
11:44
Remain backer Alastair Campbell - the former Labour spindoctor - has been speaking on the Week at Westminster on BBC Radio 4 this morning. He says that Boris Johnson appears to be “bumbling and busking” his way through the campaign and either doesn’t have the arguments - or doesn’t believe in them.
Although his antics such as demolishing Cornish pasties and downing pints are amusing, people are starting to see through the former London mayor, Campbell says: “They want serious arguments.”
He adds that the “pack of lies” the leave campaign has printed on the side of its battle bus shows they are worried about their prospects.
11.27am BST
11:27
Brexit would tip UK back into recession, Cameron warns
David Cameron has echoed the warning of Bank of England governor Mark Carney - and IMF chief Christine Lagarde - this week that a vote to leave the European Union could tip British back into recession.
Speaking as he unveiled a new campaign poster at an event in his Witney constituency in Oxfordshire, the prime minister said the UK would take an “immediate and sustained hit” if it votes for Brexit in the referendum on 23 June.
I am absolutely convinced that our economic security will be better if we stay in a reformed European Union and it will be seriously at risk if we were to leave. If we vote to leave on June 23 we will be voting for higher prices, we will be voting for fewer jobs, we will be voting for lower growth, we will be voting potentially for a recession. That is the last thing our economy needs.”
His audience were reportedly less than thrilled by the speech:
David Cameron's unveiling a poster in a fleece.
Cameron surrounded by bored youth holding IN posters.
.@David_Cameron shows how the economy could be hit to the tune of £4,300 per household per year if we leave Europe pic.twitter.com/DDvPa6VsIY
Updated
at 11.32am BST
11.17am BST
11:17
While the Vote Leave campaign claims that staying in the EU would costs every household £4,600, Stronger In puts the cost of leaving at £4,300 apiece:
£4,300- that's the cost of leaving the EU for every household, according to official analysis by HM Treasury. Pls RT pic.twitter.com/PY4IHOdSUy
11.05am BST
11:05
Former Labour business secretary and Remain campaigner Chuka Umunna tweets:
Stephen Hawking couldn't be clearer: #Brexit would be a DISASTER for UK science. https://t.co/ct3RGxdbbz pic.twitter.com/220joGDNDB #StrongerIn
10.50am BST
10:50
In response to David Cameron unveiling a new Britain Stronger in Europe campaign poster, Vote Leave has published a series of graphics highlighting what it claims is the cost of staying in the EU.
Vote Leave chief executive Matthew Elliott said:
David Cameron ... is failing to be honest with hardworking families about the costs of the EU. We hand £50 million to Brussels every day while EU regulations undermine our economy, democracy and borders. On 23 June it is safer to take control and Vote Leave.”
Updated
at 11.05am BST
10.40am BST
10:40
Boris Johnson - figurehead of the leave campaign - will be speaking in the south west today, while the Grassroots Out campaign is mounting a nationwide blitz with events including a rally in Chester addressed by Conservative former cabinet minister Owen Paterson and Ukip migration spokesman Steven Woolfe.
Mr Paterson will say: “If we vote to remain, we will be consigning ourselves to being a colony of an EU superstate, with more integration and increasingly diminished British influence. If we vote Leave, we will be making the safer choice, and securing the future freedom and prosperity of this region and the UK at large.
10.38am BST
10:38
'Lies in 10 Downing Street, not in Brussels' - Corbyn
Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn is trying to rally support among Labour voters to stay in the EU. He will launch a highly partisan attack on the Conservatives, saying responsibility for many of the UK’s problems “lies in 10 Downing Street, not in Brussels”. His comments are likely to be seen as a response to concerns within the Remain camp that they are encountering significant hostility to the EU on the doorstep in traditional Labour-voting areas.
Corbyn - who for many years opposed EU membership - will highlight the importance of European regulations in underpinning workers’ rights, which would be jeopardised by a Leave vote:
People in this country face many problems: from insecure jobs, low pay and unaffordable housing to stagnating living standards and environmental degradation, and the responsibility for them lies in 10 Downing Street, not in Brussels. The Tories and Ukip are on record as saying they would like to cut back our workplace rights and many unscrupulous employers would have our rights at work off us if they had the chance.”
Updated
at 10.57am BST
10.24am BST
10:24
Another day, another warning about Brexit from the government, with David Cameron saying that leaving the European Union will cost Britain billions of pounds in infrastructure investment. The prime minister said a vote to leave would mean an end to Britain’s membership of the European Investment Bank (EIB) which has poured more than £16bn into UK projects in the past three years.
Vital projects across every region of the UK have been financed by the EIB. Not only would leaving the EU see us wave goodbye to this crucial funding - but, with a smaller economy hit by new trading barriers and job losses, it’s unlikely we’d be able to find that money from alternative sources.”
The projects that have benefited from EIB support include new trains for the east coast main line, extending the M8 motorway between Edinburgh and Glasgow, and expanding Oxford University’s research and teaching facilities.
Updated
at 10.48am BST
10.17am BST
10:17
Cameron, Corbyn and Johnson hit the campaign trail
Good morning, and welcome to the Guardian’s live coverage of the EU referendum campaign, which is expected to move up a gear as political leaders from across the main parties unite to make their case for Britain to remain in - or leave - the bloc.
David Cameron, Jeremy Corbyn, Tim Farron and Caroline Lucas are each expected to speak at separate events for the Remain campaign, which will hold more than 1,000 rallies across the UK today.
Meanwhile, Boris Johnson, former cabinet minister Owen Paterson and Ukip’s immigration spokesman Steven Woolfe will address voters at Vote Leave and Grassroots Out campaign events.
The prime minister will kick off the biggest day of campaigning yet as he unveils a new Remain poster, warning British households they stand to lose £4,300 in the event of a Brexit.
He will say: “This is a day unlike any other: politicians of every stripe taking to the streets with the same message. Because we face a vote unlike any other, one which will shape our country for decades – even generations – to come.
“And not in some abstract or remote way. We’ll see the effects of this referendum in our lives: the jobs we do, the opportunities our children have, the public services we rely on, the prices we pay, and the bills that land on our doormats.”