Three quarters of Jeremy Corbyn supporters want Britain to remain a member of the EU – and most want their leader to campaign to stay in
There’s been a lot of talk of ‘mandates’ since Jeremy Corbyn’s was confirmed as the new leader of the Labour Party on Saturday. The sheer scale of his victory gives the new leader a good degree of cover, and seems to be giving pause to would-be critics within the party.
Signature policies of his campaign such as renationalisation of the railways and ‘people’s QE’ clearly fall under this mandate from the party faithful.
However, one thing Mr Corbyn would not have a mandate for would be to join the ‘Brexiteers’ and throw his weight behind a campaign to leave the EU – no matter what the outcome of David Cameron’s negotiations.
A YouGov survey conducted last week of those eligible to vote in the Labour Party leadership election asked the question, and the response was clear. Overall, 77% of the Labour selectorate would vote to remain a member of the EU if asked today – including 74% of those who supported Jeremy Corbyn. Asked to consider how they would feel after David Cameron had renegotiated and was recommending continued membership, the number changes only very slightly – falling to 76% of Labour members and 71% of those who voted for Mr Corbyn.
The survey then asked specifically if the members felt that the Labour leader should actively campaign in the referendum. Here there are more differences between the different supporter groups within the party. 83% of both Yvette Cooper’s supporters and Liz Kendall’s supporters, and 73% of Andy Burnham’s supporters, would like to see the Labour leader campaign to stay in the EU. For Mr Corbyn’s supporters the figure is 57% - lower but still a solid majority. Only 7% of Jeremy Corbyn’s supporters think the leader should campaign to leave the EU.
These numbers show what a delicate issue this has already become for the new leader. Reports suggest that it was one of the most important queries raised by shadow cabinet members before agreeing to sign up, and they can now point to the fact that Mr Corbyn’s own supporters – his mandate – take a very clear stance on the issue.
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