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CAMPAIGN for an INDEPENDENT BRITAIN www.eurosceptic.org.uk NEWS RELEASE EMBARGOED TO 00.01hrs MONDAY 12 January 2009 SEVEN OUT OF TEN BRITISH VOTERS WANT REFERENDUM ON E.U. MEMBERSHIP ·        European Union seen as out of touch, unfair, and poor value for money ·        Eighty three per cent say British law should be paramount ·        Majority say UK politicians “don’t do enough to stand up for Britain” The overwhelming majority of Britons want a referendum on whether the UK stays in the European Union. A new poll by ComRes, commissioned by the Campaign for an Independent Britain (CIB), shows support for the EU at rock-bottom. Most voters are deeply unhappy about the way the European Union is run, and believe it is out of touch, unfair, and offers poor value for money. The poll is a devastating blow to those in the Government who want to deepen the UK ’s involvement in the EU by taking Britain into the euro zone. But it is also bad news for the Conservatives as it shows the electorate have moved beyond Tory policy on Europe and are far more Eurosceptic than the present Tory leadership. With half of voters saying Europe is “largely corrupt”, 71% of those polled say they want a national referendum to decide whether Britain remains in the EU. Seventy five per cent think UK politicians “don’t do enough to stand up for British interests in Europe ”. The same proportion views the EU as “out of touch”. Sixty five per cent feel that the UK “gets an unfair deal in the European Union; we play by the rules but nobody else does”. Only 29% believe that Britain gets good value for money from its membership of the EU. Sixty three per cent say that the EU stops Britain from having its own immigration policy, and an overwhelming 83% are opposed to European law overriding UK law. Commenting on the results, George West, Chairman of the Campaign for an Independent Britain, said: “The results come as no surprise, proving that the 2.4 billion euros of taxpayers’ money that the EU spent in 2008 alone on promoting itself and its central aim of ‘ever closer union’ was money thrown away. No amount of EU flag waving, singing the EU national anthem ‘Ode to Joy’ or EU brainwashing will ever win over the hearts and minds of British people who were told in 1972 that they were joining nothing more than a trading Common Market.”   The poll results were welcomed by leading Eurosceptic Members of the European Parliament.   Nigel Farage, Leader of the UK Independence Party (UKIP) and MEP for the South East of England, commented: “This poll shows how hopelessly out-of-touch our politicians are with the public. The need for a referendum, on fundamental issues of sovereignty, has never been greater.”   Roger Helmer, Conservative MEP for the East Midlands and Chairman of The Freedom Association, added: “I am delighted at this further confirmation that the British people demand a say on the EU. The EU's frantic attempts to deny citizens a say on the Lisbon Treaty are despicable. Their contempt for the voters is breathtaking.” -ENDS Press contact: Andy Smith, Press Officer, Campaign for an Independent Britain , tel: 07737 271676, email: press@eurosceptic.org.uk Editor’s notes (1) ComRes interviewed 1,007 GB adults by telephone between January 2 and January 4, 2009. Data were weighted to be representative demographically of all GB adults. ComRes is a member of the British Polling Council and abides by its rules. Full poll results and breakdowns are available on request. Contact: Greig Baker, ComRes, 28 Broadway, London SW1H 9JX. Tel 020 7340 9634 Email greig@comres.co.uk Web www.comres.co.uk (2) The Campaign for an Independent Britain (CIB) is a cross-party pressure-group with a nationwide membership and a network of active local groups. CIB publishes a quarterly tabloid newspaper, Free Britain, with news and views on the EU, plus regular newsletters for its activists and a series of eye-catching public information leaflets. Its website, www.eurosceptic.org.uk, is an authoritative source of information on all aspects of Britain ’s membership of the European Union. Members of CIB include prominent MPs, Peers and MEPs from across the political spectrum, as well as journalists, teachers, trade unionists, civil rights campaigners, lawyers, business leaders and local councillors.  Its joint Presidents are Lord Stoddart of Swindon (Independent Labour) and Sir Richard Body (former Conservative MP). CIB website: www.eurosceptic.org.uk