As the day of the Brexit vote moves closer, more and more personalities in the public eye have voiced their view on which way Britain should vote on Thursday. Politicians, economists, celebrities have made their arguments as to why they think Britain will be better off in or out of the European Union.
Cabinet ministers favour ‘Remain’ by 23 to 7. Most notable leading UK politicians in support of European Union membership are Prime Minister David Cameron, Chancellor George Osborne, Foreign Secretary Phillip Hammond and Home Secretary Theresa May. While the ‘Leave’ campaign is supported by former London Mayor Boris Johnson, Justice Secretary Michael Gove, Commons Leader Chris Grayling and UKIP Leader Nigel Farage.
Major economists also gave their input. The governor of the Bank of England has warned of an economic downturn if Britain votes to leave the European Union. His view has been joined by the head of the IMF Christine Lagarde who cautioned the likely worsening conditions for investment. Last weekend the Guardian also received an open letter from 10 Nobel Prize winning economists concerned about the economic consequences of a possible Brexit and urging the British people to vote for ‘Remain’. An 11th Nobel Prize winner, the American economist Paul Krugman, addressed the issue in his own blog in the New York Times in late April with a similar opinion.
As the ‘Remain’ campaign keeps rallying up its academic backers and quotes on their webpage that “9 out of 10 economists say leaving Europe will damage the British economy”, the ‘Leave’ campaign found a group of economists to actively back their cause as well. The group ‘Economists for Brexit’ comprises eight British economists, including former Chief Economic Advisor to Boris Johnson, Dr. Gerard Lyons, and Global macro-strategist at VTB Capital in London, Neil Mackinnon.
World leaders and politicians from countries around the world have also voiced their opinion. US President Barrack Obama, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbell and New Zealand Prime Minister John Key have appealed to the British people to vote Remain. US Presidential Candidate Donald Trump and President of the French National Front Marine Le Pen argued that Britain could do well for itself outside of the European Union.
Celebrities which have given their view on the debate most notably include Idris Elba, Keira Knightley, Benedict Cumberbatch, Mick Hucknall, Jeremy Clarkson, Lord Alan Sugar, Eddie Izzard and Emma Thompson on the ‘Remain’ side. Scientist and researcher Stephen Hawkins also issued a statement to the British people declaring that a Brexit would be devastating for Scientific research and innovation in Britain due to the loss of EU university funding. The ‘Leave’ campaign is backed by personalities such as Elizabeth Hurley, Joan Collins, Jullian Fellowes, Sol Campbell, Roger Dultrey, Vicky Pattinson, Sir Michael Caine and Duncan Bannatyne.