This article is from the source 'guardian' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at https://www.theguardian.com/politics/live/2016/jun/22/eu-referendum-live-remain-leave-last-day-campaign

The article has changed 27 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 12 Version 13
EU referendum live: Major accuses Johnson and Gove of being 'gravediggers of prosperity' EU referendum live: Major accuses Johnson and Gove of being 'gravediggers of prosperity'
(35 minutes later)
2.44pm BST
14:44
This is from my colleague Heather Stewart.
Noticeably upbeat tone at last Labour In event - less transactional, more about spirit of openness and cooperation the EU represents.
2.40pm BST
14:40
Jeremy Corbyn is speaking now.
He thanks Khan for winning the London mayor election against the most disgusting campaign he had ever seen in an election.
Labour does not believe in the status quo, he says. It wants to reform Europe to make it work better for people.
He says people should vote to remain in the EU for jobs, for rights at work and for the NHS.
2.33pm BST
14:33
Sadiq Khan is speaking now. He says Labour faces the fight of its life between now and 10pm tomorrow. He says staying in the EU is the best way to be true to British values and Labour values.
2.29pm BST
14:29
Kezia Dugdale, the Scottish Labour leader, says the risks of leaving the EU outweigh any potential benefits. And these are risks we do not have to take, she says.
She says you do not have to love Europe to vote for it.
Tomorrow is not the day for a protest vote, she says.
2.25pm BST
14:25
Jeremy Corbyn, Sadiq Khan, Carwyn Jones and Kezia Dugdale are all on the stage together.
And Jones, the Welsh first minister, is speaking first.
He says his job involves promoting employment. Employers want to come to Wales because it is in the single market, he says.
He says he wants Britain to be a tolerant country.
2.19pm BST
14:19
Labour rally for Remain
Alan Johnson, the chair of Labour In for Britain, is speaking at the Labour rally now. It is going to feature Jeremy Corbyn, the party leader, Kezia Dugdale, the Scottish leader, Carwyn Jones, the Welsh first minister, and Sadiq Khan, the mayor of London.
Johnson says an Italian friend told him recently that for Britain to stand alone in 1940 when it was surrounded by enemies was heroic. But for it to stand alone now, when it is surrounded by friends, would be absurd.
Updated
at 2.41pm BST
2.14pm BST
14:14
Sir John Major's speech - Summary
Sir John Major’s speech this morning, from the event with David Cameron, Harriet Harman and Marvin Rees, the Labour mayor of Bristol, was very good. I’ve already quoted one passage from it, but here is a summary of all the key points.
Now, if our nation does vote to leave tomorrow, we must respect their decision. But if they vote to leave on the basis of half-truths and untruths and misunderstandings, then pretty soon the gravediggers of our prosperity will have some very serious questions to answer. They will have to account for what they have said and done. But that will be of no consolation. For we will be out, out for good, diminished as an influence upon the world, a truly Great Britain shrunk down to a little England, perhaps without Scotland, perhaps with a grumpy Wales, and certainly with a Northern Ireland divided from the south by the border controls that would then be the edge of the European Union. That is not how our island story should go.
I think the prime minister has fought an extremely brave campaign in very difficult circumstances. He’s put facts before our nation, he’s warned of the dangers, and that is his duty as prime minister. He cannot ignore the dangers that we face, and it is his responsibility to put those dangers before people. And in return for doing that he has faced a great deal of opposition and sometimes abuse from people who frankly we might have expected better from. And I think the way in which he has conducted himself in putting the country before self and the country before party is quite remarkable. And, David, I warmly congratulate you on what you have managed to achieve.
Let me say just a word about immigration. I come from Brixton, I was brought up in the 50s, I know a little about it from direct experience. And I have to tell you this. In a world that has changed, in a world that is on the move in almost every part of the world, leaving the European Union is no solution to the scale of migration around the world. it is a reaction to it, but it isn’t a solution to it. And to try and solve a short-term problem that will diminish as the European economy begins to grow again, and leave Europe and risk a far greater longterm impact to our prosperity in the world is quite disproportionate to the problem that we face.
And I find it extraordinary that people should point to Turkey and suggest that 77m Turks are suddenly going to descend and take all our hospital places and all our school places and all our local authority dwellings. They have been negotiating for 30 years without getting in. They are not going to get in in my judgment for one decade, two decades, perhaps ever. Even if they do get in, we are not in the Schengen zone. And even if that happened in some far distant future, what absurdity it is to suggest all 77m Turks are suddenly going to say ‘Let’s go to the United Kingdom. The national living wage has risen by 50p. Let’s get there as quickly as we can.’
Let me turn the telescope of introspection around for a moment. Suppose tomorrow our nation decided to leave Europe. Not only would that be disastrous for us. But if we leave, what would that mean for Europe? What would Europe lose if they lost the British? Well, firstly they would lose the best performing economy in Europe, the economy that on the trends of recent years may very well in 15 years’ time be the biggest economy in Europe, bigger than Germany. They will lose one of only two nations that have a military capability of significance and a nuclear capacity. And they would lose the country with the longest, the widest and the deepest foreign policy reach of any European nation. Europe itself without Britain would shrink and would be diminished.
In a world of three great economic powers, America, China, Europe, do we really wish our continent to sink to a lower level of significance than America and China. I don’t. I think the European voice is worth having and worth listening to and I don’t wish to see it washed away because the British moved away from Europe.
The prime minister is quite young. Well, youngish. And I’m not, so perhaps I represent the grey vote. Some have said I always have done.
1.44pm BST1.44pm BST
13:4413:44
Nine MPs are yet to declare which way they will vote in the EU referendum, with less than 24 hours until polls open - while nearly three-quarters are voting to remain, the Press Association reports.Nine MPs are yet to declare which way they will vote in the EU referendum, with less than 24 hours until polls open - while nearly three-quarters are voting to remain, the Press Association reports.
A survey of all 650 MPs carried out by the Press Association found 478 (73.5%) are voting Remain, while less than a quarter (159) are voting Leave. Some 1.4% have not yet declared.A survey of all 650 MPs carried out by the Press Association found 478 (73.5%) are voting Remain, while less than a quarter (159) are voting Leave. Some 1.4% have not yet declared.
Four further MPs - Speaker John Bercow (Buckingham) and Deputy Speakers Lindsay Hoyle (Chorley), Eleanor Laing (Epping Forest) and Natascha Engel (North East Derbyshire) - will remain undeclared, having invoked their roles within the House of Commons as the reason.Four further MPs - Speaker John Bercow (Buckingham) and Deputy Speakers Lindsay Hoyle (Chorley), Eleanor Laing (Epping Forest) and Natascha Engel (North East Derbyshire) - will remain undeclared, having invoked their roles within the House of Commons as the reason.
Of the nine MPs, seven will not be sharing how they will vote on Thursday, the Press Association understands.Of the nine MPs, seven will not be sharing how they will vote on Thursday, the Press Association understands.
These include Ian Liddell-Grainger, MP for Bridgewater and West Somerset.These include Ian Liddell-Grainger, MP for Bridgewater and West Somerset.
The long-planned Hinkley Point nuclear power station is within Liddell-Grainger’s constituency and he said he did not want to jeopardise the project by declaring his vote in the referendum.The long-planned Hinkley Point nuclear power station is within Liddell-Grainger’s constituency and he said he did not want to jeopardise the project by declaring his vote in the referendum.
Conservative Liddell-Grainger said: “I have actually made myself very clear about Europe in the past but we are so close after nine-and-a-half years of trying so I’m not prepared to say either way.”Conservative Liddell-Grainger said: “I have actually made myself very clear about Europe in the past but we are so close after nine-and-a-half years of trying so I’m not prepared to say either way.”
He added: “If it hadn’t been for Hinkley I would have declared but I am not going to say. It is right in the middle of my constituency.”He added: “If it hadn’t been for Hinkley I would have declared but I am not going to say. It is right in the middle of my constituency.”
Five other Tory MPs -Tracey Crouch (Chatham and Aylesford), Seema Kennedy (South Ribble), Jesse Norman (Hereford and South Herefordshire), Anne Milton (Guildford) and Caroline Nokes (Romsey and Southampton North) - also said they would not be declaring how they intended to vote.Five other Tory MPs -Tracey Crouch (Chatham and Aylesford), Seema Kennedy (South Ribble), Jesse Norman (Hereford and South Herefordshire), Anne Milton (Guildford) and Caroline Nokes (Romsey and Southampton North) - also said they would not be declaring how they intended to vote.
Warley’s John Spellar will not be declaring his voting intention, his office said. He remains the final Labour MP to reveal how he will be voting in Thursday’s referendum.Warley’s John Spellar will not be declaring his voting intention, his office said. He remains the final Labour MP to reveal how he will be voting in Thursday’s referendum.
Huw Merriman, Conservative MP for Bexhill and Battle, said he would only announce which way he intended to vote on polling day after he had “finished a programme of discussions” with constituents.Huw Merriman, Conservative MP for Bexhill and Battle, said he would only announce which way he intended to vote on polling day after he had “finished a programme of discussions” with constituents.
Tory MP Justin Tomlinson (North Swindon) declined to confirm which way he would be voting.Tory MP Justin Tomlinson (North Swindon) declined to confirm which way he would be voting.
1.26pm BST1.26pm BST
13:2613:26
Jeremy Corbyn turned down an invitation to appear with David Cameron and Tim Farron at a cross-party rally today, BuzzFeed reports. Corbyn has always said he would not share a platform with Cameron.Jeremy Corbyn turned down an invitation to appear with David Cameron and Tim Farron at a cross-party rally today, BuzzFeed reports. Corbyn has always said he would not share a platform with Cameron.
1.22pm BST1.22pm BST
13:2213:22
Here is a Guardian picture gallery with some of the best pictures from the campaign.Here is a Guardian picture gallery with some of the best pictures from the campaign.
Related: EU vote: ups and downs of the in and out campaigns – in picturesRelated: EU vote: ups and downs of the in and out campaigns – in pictures
1.20pm BST1.20pm BST
13:2013:20
Q: You used to back Turkey joining the EU. [Martha Kearney plays a clip of Boris Johnson saying he favoured Turkey joining. It is from the TV documentary he made to promote his book about Rome, which also includes a pro-Turkey line.)Q: You used to back Turkey joining the EU. [Martha Kearney plays a clip of Boris Johnson saying he favoured Turkey joining. It is from the TV documentary he made to promote his book about Rome, which also includes a pro-Turkey line.)
Johnson says that when he made those comments the EU was a different kind of organisation.Johnson says that when he made those comments the EU was a different kind of organisation.
1.18pm BST1.18pm BST
13:1813:18
Boris Johnson on the World at OneBoris Johnson on the World at One
Boris Johnson is being interviewed on the World at One.Boris Johnson is being interviewed on the World at One.
Q: Sadiq Khan accused you last night of running Project Hate.Q: Sadiq Khan accused you last night of running Project Hate.
Johnson says he does not accept that. He is running a positive campaign.Johnson says he does not accept that. He is running a positive campaign.
Q: What about Michael Gove compared economists to Nazis.Q: What about Michael Gove compared economists to Nazis.
Johnson ignores the question, and says there are experts on both sides of this debate.Johnson ignores the question, and says there are experts on both sides of this debate.
Q: Are the IMF like Nazis?Q: Are the IMF like Nazis?
Johnson says Gove has run a fantastic campaign, and was right about this. He says the IMF did not foresee the 2008 crash and were wrong about the euro.Johnson says Gove has run a fantastic campaign, and was right about this. He says the IMF did not foresee the 2008 crash and were wrong about the euro.
Q: But that does not make them Nazis. Doesn’t this suggest you are running Project Hate.Q: But that does not make them Nazis. Doesn’t this suggest you are running Project Hate.
Johnson says he has run a very positive campaign.Johnson says he has run a very positive campaign.
Boris Johnson: Gove is right to use Nazi analogy https://t.co/luqPVhroNL #wato pic.twitter.com/P8n6Ag6aHsBoris Johnson: Gove is right to use Nazi analogy https://t.co/luqPVhroNL #wato pic.twitter.com/P8n6Ag6aHs
He says immigration is good for the country.He says immigration is good for the country.
Q: So would you cut it to below 100,000.Q: So would you cut it to below 100,000.
Johnson says that is a matter for the government. But he thinks the government should be in control.Johnson says that is a matter for the government. But he thinks the government should be in control.
Q: What level do you think net migration should be?Q: What level do you think net migration should be?
Johnson says the current level, 333,000, is too high. And he says 184,000 net, the figure for EU migration, is also too high.Johnson says the current level, 333,000, is too high. And he says 184,000 net, the figure for EU migration, is also too high.
1.04pm BST1.04pm BST
13:0413:04
Duncan Smith accuses Cameron of 'lying to the British people' over TurkeyDuncan Smith accuses Cameron of 'lying to the British people' over Turkey
Iain Duncan Smith, the former work and pensions secretary, has accused David Cameron of “lying to the British people” over Turkey. Duncan Smith was responding to Newsnight’s interview last night with Ilnur Cevik, an adviser to the Turkish president, who said Cameron had supported Turkey joining the EU (see 7.27am), and to a line in Sir John Major’s speech this morning where he suggested Turkey could join the EU within a decade.Iain Duncan Smith, the former work and pensions secretary, has accused David Cameron of “lying to the British people” over Turkey. Duncan Smith was responding to Newsnight’s interview last night with Ilnur Cevik, an adviser to the Turkish president, who said Cameron had supported Turkey joining the EU (see 7.27am), and to a line in Sir John Major’s speech this morning where he suggested Turkey could join the EU within a decade.
Duncan Smith said:Duncan Smith said:
David Cameron has repeatedly claimed that Turkey is not going to join the EU despite it being Government policy. Now the Turkish government has confirmed that he is the ‘chief supporter’ of their bid to join the EU.David Cameron has repeatedly claimed that Turkey is not going to join the EU despite it being Government policy. Now the Turkish government has confirmed that he is the ‘chief supporter’ of their bid to join the EU.
Cameron also said that Turkey will not join until the year 3000 but Sir John Major has let the cat out of the bag - Turkey could be in the EU in ten years’ time.Cameron also said that Turkey will not join until the year 3000 but Sir John Major has let the cat out of the bag - Turkey could be in the EU in ten years’ time.
I’m afraid there is no conclusion you can draw from this, except that David Cameron is colluding with the EU and lying to the British people. Families are suffering the consequences of uncontrolled migration - a direct result of the EU’s obsession with freedom of movement.I’m afraid there is no conclusion you can draw from this, except that David Cameron is colluding with the EU and lying to the British people. Families are suffering the consequences of uncontrolled migration - a direct result of the EU’s obsession with freedom of movement.
Duncan Smith has put quite an extreme interpretation on what Major said this morning. Major said he thought Turkey would not be joining the EU “in in my judgment for one decade, two decades, perhaps ever”.Duncan Smith has put quite an extreme interpretation on what Major said this morning. Major said he thought Turkey would not be joining the EU “in in my judgment for one decade, two decades, perhaps ever”.
12.50pm BST12.50pm BST
12:5012:50
A man named Laurence Taylor who says he is “fed up with the rubbish being talked about immigration” has taken a full-page advert in the Metro to argue that it is a non-issued, the Political Scrapbook blog reports.A man named Laurence Taylor who says he is “fed up with the rubbish being talked about immigration” has taken a full-page advert in the Metro to argue that it is a non-issued, the Political Scrapbook blog reports.
12.37pm BST
12:37
Outside the Scottish parliament the folk music wing of the Remain movement have been out in action this morning, my colleague Severin Carrell reports.
https://t.co/csMB788AwP
12.30pm BST
12:30
The EU referendum campaign has damaged the image of the Conservative party, according to an Ipsos MORI poll for the Evening Standard.
The proportion of voters who think the Conservatives have the best team of leaders has sunk from 43 to 36 per cent since January, found Ipsos MORI.
And the proportion who think the Tories are the most “clear and united” about their policies has dropped from 33 to just 24 per cent ...
However, the Conservatives are well ahead of Jeremy Corbyn’s Labour party on both measures.
12.18pm BST
12:18
Cameron says Gove has 'lost it' with Nazi propagandists comment
David Cameron criticised Michael Gove in an interview with LBC for comparing anti-Brexit economists to Nazi propagandists. (See 10.49am.) In a subsequent interview with Sky News, Cameron went further, saying Gove had “lost it”. He said:
To hear the Leave campaign today sort of comparing independent experts and economists to Nazi sympathisers - I think they have rather lost it.
These people are independent - economists who have won Nobel prizes, business leaders responsible for creating thousands of jobs, institutions that were set up after the war to try to provide independent advice. It is right to listen.
12.01pm BST
12:01
Here are some more lines from the end of Nigel Farage’s press conference (which I missed because it was not covered on Sky News or BBC.)
Farage on staying on as UKIP leader - doesn't know what will him to him, Cameron or anyone else. 'Winning is what matters'
Farage tells journalist from Norway: 'it must be dreadful coming from a country like that!'
Farage says country to watch is Italy where the anti-EU five star movement have won major election for mayor of Rome
Farage then tells a Portuguese journalist that it is "pitiful" what the euro had done to his country
Nigel Farage on his post-referendum future: "Don't ask a general going into battle what he does if he loses."
11.44am BST
11:44
Michael Slezak
My colleague Michael Slezak has sent me more on the memorial event for Jo Cox in Sydney. (See 9.50am.) There were just over 20 people there.
Organiser of the Sydney event, Neva Frecheville, said she felt the need to bring together people who knew Cox or who were moved by her, following her death.
“When it happened it was just something that I feel like has the potential to make us all feel really isolated and full of despair and without hope. But actually there’s an opportunity for us to come together around everything that Jo stood for in her life, and the values that she lived her life by. I think it’s time for more of us to start living those as well,” she said.
One of the people who attended the event was Nic Seton. He said he knew Cox from when he lived in a boat in East London in 2010, right next door to the boat Cox lived in.
“We just by chance happened to pull up next door to their home – their boat,” he said. “We’d invite them over, and we went over to their place. We had a lot of barbecues and a really good time.”
Like Frecheville, Seton wanted to see the good that could come out of what he said was a devastating tragedy. “I feel like the silver lining really is that people have recognised that the values that she had and are really seeking to fulfill it themselves,” he said.
Jane McAdam, a law professor at the University of New South Wales, said she knew Cox’s husband, Brendan Cox, and attended partly because of that connection. “But I think more broadly it was what Jo devoted her life to in upholding the principles that she thought were so important in trying to create a society that was connected and not divided,” she said.
11.39am BST
11:39
Boris Johnson has been heckled in Ashby, the Press Association’s David Hughes reports.
Boris heckled by teenage Remain supporter in Ashby - and by a lady asking him to kick Cameron out if Leave win. pic.twitter.com/8ZimylHwB2
11.31am BST
11:31
Q: In the event of Brexit, would you stay on as Ukip leader to ensure that Leave commit to cutting immigration?
Farage says whatever happens tomorrow Ukip will have an important role to play. It is the biggest party in the European parliament, and, like the canary in the mineshaft, it will be able to say if reform is not happening.
My colleague Marina Hyde points out (not for the first time) that Farage does not seem to fully understand the metaphor he is using.
"We'll act as the canary in the mineshaft" says Farage of Ukip post-Brexit, still failing to get what this metaphor means for the canary
Updated
at 11.37am BST
11.30am BST
11:30
Farage says the establishment have done all they can to stack the odds in their favour, but that he still thinks Leave will win.
11.30am BST
11:30
Farage is now taking questions from the media.
Q: Diane James said last night you had apologised for the “Breaking Point’ poster. Is that correct?
Farage says he apologised for the timing of the poster, and for the fact it was abused. But he cannot apologise for the content, because it is true. He says Angela Merkel’s immigration policy had been disastrous.
There has been one really offensive poster, he says. It was the Operation Black Vote one showing a Leave supporters as a skinhead. He says that was “offensive” and “abusive” and an “absolute disgrace”.
He is referring to this image.
Updated
at 11.33am BST
11.25am BST
11:25
Farage says that for the last time he will take out his passport to make the point that people do not have British passports anymore.
He says Remain support is dominated by vested interests.
He says Cameron has made another dishonest claim today. He says Cameron said if we voted to stay in the EU, we would be voting for more reform. (See 8.26am.) But that is not the case, he says. He says other prime ministers have tried to reform the EU. But the only reform the EU is interested in is more integration, he says.
And he says one of the lasting images of the campaign for him was Bob Geldof shouting abuse at him on the Thames as he tried to give voice to the grievances of fishermen. Geldof is a millionaire rock star, he says. People like that do not care about ordinary people, he says.
He says most of his supporters would “crawl over broken glass” to get to a polling station tomorrow.