Jo Cox: newspaper uses murder to campaign for Remain
They suspended EU Referendum campaigning in respect to Jo Cox, the Labour MP killed in the streets of her Yorkshire constituency. No-one told the Daily Mirror. As Jo Cox’s alleged killer, Thomas Mair stood in the dock at Westminster magistrates’ court, giving his name as “death to traitors”, the Mirror wondered: could Jo Cox’s barbaric killing help the Remain camp win the vote?
The paper teasers its readers: “ComRes analysts were amazed when the results coming in after 2pm began to show a marked change of heart from Brexit to Remain.”
Nigel Nelson continues in the paper that supports Remain: “Voters became more inclined to want to stay in the EU after MP Jo Cox was shot.”
They did?
The astonishing finding comes in a ComRes poll for the Sunday Mirror. And it shows the murder of the 41 year old mum of two could have a direct effect on Thursday’s result.
Awful if it does. Awful if a heinous crime decides the direction the future of the United Kingdom. Awful if Thomas Mair, Mrs Cox’s alleged killer, has a decisive say in the vote.
Our pollsters were asking questions on the EU referendum at the exact time news broke of the attack on the Batley and Spen Labour MP at 2pm on Thursday. ComRes analysts were amazed when the results coming in after 2pm began to show a marked change of heart. Before Ms Cox was shot 45 per cent of those polled said they would be “delighted” if the UK voted to leave the EU.
That dropped to 38 per cent after it – and the Remain camp got an astonishing nine point boost from those saying they would be delighted if we stayed.
Jo Cox made a difference then, so too did Thomas Mair, allegedly.
ComRes polled a total of 2,046 people between Wednesday June 15 at 9pm on Thursday. Most people had answered our questions before Ms Cox was gunned down on Thursday afternoon, but 192 answers came in afterwards.
Seems a bit woolly, no? The poll contained no question on Jo Cox. It’s pure guesswork to say her death had an impact.
Maybe the Independent can help.
EU referendum poll: 44% would be ‘delighted’ if Britain voted to Leave. Only 28% would feel the same if it’s Remain. Exclusive ComRes poll for The Independent finds voters feel more strongly about leaving the EU than staying…
In the only reaction that favours Remain, 41 per cent said they would feel “anxious” in the event of a Leave vote, more than the 33 per cent who would feel the same about Remain.
But what about the “tragic Jo poll surge”?
Polling was carried out online on Wednesday and Thursday this week, with 192 out of 2,046 interviews carried out after the news of the attack on Jo Cox, the Labour MP. Andrew Hawkins, chairman of ComRes, suggested that the attack might have influenced responses: “Not all respondents will have learned of the attack immediately, and the results should be taken with a degree of caution, but across all emotions reaction to a Leave vote was more negative among those interviewed after 2pm on Thursday.”
Thankfully, the poll is published online. Comres reports:
With less than a week to go until the vote, British adults are far more likely to say they would be delighted in the result of Britain voting to Leave the EU, rather than voting to remain (44% v 28%).
Similarly, more than two in five say they would be disappointed if Britain voted to Remain (44% v 33% who say the same if Britain votes to leave).
Despite this, many British adults remain uncertain over the future of a post-Brexit Britain; two in five say they would feel anxious if Britain votes to leave the EU next week, compared to a third who say the same for remain (41% v 33%).Labour voters are more likely than their Conservative counterparts to feel anxious in the event of Britain voting to leave the EU next week (52% v 41%). This is the only emotion where a majority of voters of either major party share this sentiment.
Such are the facts.
Posted: 19th, June 2016 | In: Politicians, Reviews, Tabloids Comments (25) | TrackBack | Permalink
