56% Of Britons Want To Stay In The Eu!!

[sp1814]

...with just 36% saying they want out.

Why do you think this is?

Could it be that the rise of UKIP has actually galvanised the waverers?

Could this be the real voice of the 'silent majority'?

With the rise and evident popularity of UKIP, these figures make absolutely no sense...!

Anyone got an idea?

Because I for one am flummoxed

(...and admittedly, quietly/childishly giggling to myself in anticipation of the forthcoming answers).

Reuters link:

http://uk.reuters.com/article/2014/10/22/uk-britain-politics-europe-idUKKCN0IB1UZ20141022

[Svejk]

The polls say Labour will win the next election. People tell them anything for a laugh.

[sp1814]

Svejk

But In November 2012, UKIP was on just 3 per cent in opinion polls and 48 per cent backed leaving the EU, with only 44 per cent in favour of staying in.

Do you this it's feasible that people are lying now, but were telling the truth back then?

I'm not convinced.

[wolf63]

There are many people, myself included, have absolutely no idea what staying in or leaving the EU actually means.

I know that they pass laws and tell us to do stuff that is generally felt unfair or stupid.

There has to be benefits to staying in the EU as well as benefits in leaving.

I like the word 'flummoxed' - it even sounds confused

[DaisyNonna]

"Nobody asked me, sir," she said.

[sp1814]

wolf63

I too like the word 'flummoxed'...it has a nice 19th century ring about it.

[Svejk]

As you say, the figures make no sense. Wait for the exit(;-)) poll.

[sp1814]

DaisyNonna

Nor me - but I have to say, I have a degree of faith in MORI's polling algorithms, because they've been in the business so long.

But I have to say - the figures are insane. I would never had said that support was as low as 36%.

I wonder how MORI did with the Scottish independence polls...

[ChillDoubt]

As Svejk said, the polls had Labour winning the Heywood and Middleton by election by 20 points the week before polling. They actually won it by a gnat's testicle in reality.

[237SJ]

They only interviewed 1002 people. What about the other 64 million?
https://www.ipsos-mori.com/researchpublications/researcharchive/3463/Support-for-EU-membership-highest-for-23-years-even-as-UKIP-rises-in-the-polls.aspx

[jim360]

Perhaps it shows that UKIP's recent rise is indeed just a protest vote against the main parties, and perhaps shows more of a rejection of their policies than an acceptance of UKIP's.

But at any rate UKIP is still not commanding an absolute majority of support, so that it's entirely possible that the poll is right and that UKIP is rising as the real anti-EU party but represents a minority position overall.

[wolf63]

sp - if the EU heard the word they would probably make up some law to ban it.

"Save 'Flummoxed" campaigns would keep us entertained over the dreich winter months and when we win maybe the eejits in Brussels will leave us alone.

[New Judge]

The other interesting point is that I have never, ever been canvassed for anything whatsoever. No political polls, no customer satisfaction surveys, no opinion polls, no questions for "Pointless", nothing. I know they only poll about 1,000 people (or 100 for Pointless) but with about 40m adults in the UK I thought I may have been singled out by now. But no.

Although I tell a lie. One morning whilst walking up Charing Cross Road a young lady with a clipboard stopped me. She questioned me about the breakfast TV programmes that I watched (it was in the early days of such output). After she started filling in her survey form I pointed out that I had to be up in town every day by 8pm and sometimes earlier (it was about 7:45am) and that anybody she surveyed in the street at that time of the morning, me included, was unlikely to have the time or the inclination to watch breakfast TV. She tore off her survey sheet, screwed it up and threw it in a nearby bin. I suppose I went down as a "don't know".

[sp1814]

Svejk

Hmmm...just checked their website. They pretty much nailed it on the Scottish referendum.

This is actually quite interesting - it might be the one thing that Cameron needs to actually put it to the country. If he felt there was a decent chance of us voting to stay in, a referendum might come sooner rather than later...which is exactly what UKIP wants.

The only issue would be 'what happens if we vote to stay in?' What would UKIP do then?

Would Farage do a Salmond?

The mind fair boggles.

[DaisyNonna]

Do gnats have testicles?

[New Judge]

Er... 8AM ^^^^ :-)

[ChillDoubt]

Of course they do Daisy. Why do moths fly with their legs open?




Have you seen the size of mothballs?

[jim360]

Polls are usually fairly accurate even with "only" 1,000 people... with the usual caveats, of course.

It's hard to see a "No" vote in any EU referendum for the same reason that a "no" vote to Scottish Independence was almost guaranteed -- the floating voters are most likely to go for the status quo.

[sp1814]

New Judge

I too have never been part of an opinion poll, but that's how polls work. These agencies use fairly complex algorithms to account for statistical anomalies.

This poll might indeed be way off the mark, but out of interest, if the result was the other way around (with only 36% opting to stay in), do you feel you would be equally dismissive of the stats?

Aren't we all more likely to agree with polls that support our particular views (I know I am).

[DTCwordfan]

Well that is good news for when are folk going to wake up to reality that we need to trade in blocs. The UK just doesn't have the scale to exist by themselves and we are not Norway in terms of barrels of production and reserves of oil and gas to people. We would become Weak Britain very quickly.

Okay there are issues with immigration, rights, law decisions and bureaucracy and these need tackling and good on Cameron for leading the charge. There are also issues about destroying some of the socialistic thinking prevalent in countries like France that pull that country down. That's where Germany is important for the UK in pushing economic development, lower tax regimes, individual rights with an efficient social net called the health system and supporting genuine cases of need.

However, I will temper the enthusiasm of this poll as it may well be a one off.

[DaisyNonna]

Because they don't have flies like butter?