From Simon Walters and Glen Owen writing at the Daily Mail:
A majority of British people would vote to leave the European Union in the wake of the migrant crisis engulfing the continent, a shock new Mail on Sunday poll has found.
If a referendum were to be held tomorrow on whether to remain a member of the EU, 51 per cent of British people would vote ‘No’.
It follows a string of polls over recent years which have given comfortable leads to the pro-European camp. Significantly, it is the first measure of public opinion since the Government changed the wording of the referendum question, lending weight to claims that the new phrasing boosts the chances of victory for the ‘Out’ campaign.
The survey also found strong backing for David Cameron’s stance in standing up to German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who wants the UK to take in a greater share of migrants.
Growing public support to cut all ties with Brussels came as it was revealed the Prime Minister told Merkel to her face: “I could walk away from the EU.”
At a private dinner in Downing Street, Merkel accused him of being “too forceful” in demanding concessions from the rest of the EU. That was why “we all hate you and isolate you,” she said.
The astonishing exchange is the latest in a series of bombshell disclosures in a new book, Cameron At 10, by Anthony Seldon and Peter Snowdon, which is being serialised in The Mail on Sunday.
The Survation poll for this newspaper suggests that despite the wave of sympathy for Syrian refugees following the publication of harrowing pictures of three-year-old Aylan Kurdi, who drowned when his family tried to reach Greece from Turkey, British voters are opposed to opening the door to large numbers of refugees.
The survey indicates that the outcome of the referendum, which could take place as early as next year, could be hugely affected by the migrant crisis.
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