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Brexit barometer: Life imitating AWeb

17th Jun 2016
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With the EU referendum vote just under a week away, the number of polls available in the media is higher than the crowd on the second evening of Glastonbury (when, coincidentally, voting in the referendum will be drawing to a close).

In decisions such as these bookmakers are often called upon to provide a best guess for future outcomes, and while recent opinion polls have shown the ‘leave’ camp ahead, the bookies have had ‘remain’ in the lead by a wide margin for some time.

However, as shown in the graph below, the gap is now shrinking. Several bookies are now predicting that if its current momentum continues a leave vote will overtake remain as favourite in the next few days.

Brexit odds
Oddschecker

In a statement Graham Sharpe, William Hill’s media relations director, said the bookmaker was slashing the leave odds daily, and having once been long-odds outsiders it now seems “inevitable” Brexit will be favourite by the weekend.

However, in the only poll that really counts Brexit has led the way since its inception back in March.

The AccountingWEB Brexit barometer has seen leave dominate the race by an average of over 20%. The traditional stereotype of the cautious accountant has been cast to the wind, with AWeb readers looking to wave a fond ‘adieu’ to our European cousins to forge a triumphant new world of trade deals.

AccountingWEB Brexit barometer
AccountingWEB

As for why an audience of well-educated, well-qualified professionals have chosen to reject the status quo, a brief journey around the topic shows that AccountingWEB readers have a range of reasons for seeking to cut ties with Brussels.

AccountingWEB member David Cameron (not that one) called George Osborne’s warning that a vote to leave the UK would result in an emergency budget, where the Chancellor would have to hike taxes and slash spending, “typical government remain campaign blackmail”.

Reader deg2yq, a self-confessed ‘hardcore Tory voter’, stated that David Cameron (the PM, not the reader above) had “stabbed small business in the back”

Perhaps most worryingly of all, AccountingWEB regular runningmate said that the referendum genie was “out of the bottle”, and predicted another referendum debate within two or three years (should remain triumph this time around). This journalist is tired even thinking about it.

To round off what has been a marathon four months on the referendum trails you can vote now in our final Brexit barometer poll below. Who knows, if life chooses to imitate AccountingWEB once more, your mouse click could mean Britain is a very different place come next Friday…

 
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Replies (6)

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Head of woman
By Rebecca Cave
18th Jun 2016 10:48

Britain is already a very different place as a result of calling this referendum.

I am worried that the genie has indeed been let out of the bottle, but it is a mean and nasty genie that distrusts authority and hates/fears everyone who is slightly different.

I feel that trust in the political system has been smashed and its going to take an immensely tallented leader to restore that trust, but I don't know where that leader will come from.

If the result of the referendum is Leave, I fear that large numbers of skilled and entrepreneurial individuals will leave the UK, and business confidence will take a nose dive. This will result in a recession.

I can only hope that there are enough forward thinking individuals in this country who want to be part of something bigger than just UK, who will make the effort to vote to Remain on Thursday. Then we can all get back to making this country one of the most successful within the EU and provide leadership to the rest of the member states.

Thanks (3)
Routemaster image
By tom123
18th Jun 2016 14:01

The workplace has changed because of this - people are being openly requested to explain their positions - unprompted - and then, in the absence of any reply forthcoming, one is presented with whatever assumption the others have made about your voting intentions.

I, for one, will be glad when this is all done. I can now see why American politics, which is all two-way, ends up as divisive as it is.

It is impossible in a two horse race to try and appease both sides.

Thanks (3)
Francois
By Francois Badenhorst
20th Jun 2016 11:03

From a selfish perspective, I - as an Irish passport holder - am somewhat privileged. The remain camp has already said Irish people will be unaffected and I'll still have unfettered access to the EU.

So I'm peachy. But I'll tell you, I will be so disappointed for my British friends, young people who will suffer the brunt of this decision.

The EU has now repeatedly said it will treat The UK harshly, the Union is their first priority. Can you imagine the chaos it would cause if they gave Britain a soft touch? The EU's priority is the EU, not selling BMW's to The UK.

Leave can shake their heads and deny reality as much as they'd like, but it's fantasy politics to suggest otherwise.

Thanks (0)
Glenn Martin
By Glenn Martin
20th Jun 2016 15:21

Im with Tax Writer on this. I don't what the Brexit lot have seen or heard to make them think an out vote would be a good thing.

In all the way for me.

In the North the only things that happen are funded from Europe and much sooner rely on them than Westminster who seem to think anything that matters end at Watford Gap.

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Locutus of Borg
By Locutus
20th Jun 2016 19:58

For the last 6 weeks, up and down the country people have been asking remain or leave.

Remain is supposedly what the young prefer and considered the future. Whilst leave is a return to the past.

But I have never actually met anyone who wants to remain. It's pretty much unanimous that we want to leave and return to the old Aweb website!

Thanks (1)
Replying to Locutus:
Glenn Martin
By Glenn Martin
20th Jun 2016 21:59

Ha ha Locutus superb. When Boris is out of work next week get him to fight the campaign.

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