The EU referendum debate was dominated by “glaring democratic deficiencies” that left voters disengaged and confused about contrasting claims, the Electoral Reform Society has said.
The pressure group said voters felt both the leave and remain campaigns turned increasingly negative as the race wore on and many high-profile political figures including party leaders Jeremy Corbyn and David Cameron were a turnoff.
In a report entitled It’s Good to Talk: Doing Referendums Differently After the EU Vote, the society called for a “root and branch review” of how future referendums are carried out.
It comes after the prime minister, Theresa May, again pledged that “Brexit means Brexit” as her cabinet began devising plans for leaving the EU.
Katie Ghose, the chief executive of the ERS, said: “This report shows without a shadow of a doubt just how dire the EU referendum debate really was.
“There were glaring democratic deficiencies in the run-up to the vote, with the public feeling totally ill-informed. Both sides were viewed as highly negative by voters, while the top-down, personality-based nature of the debate failed to address major policies and issues, leaving the public in the dark.”
The findings contrast with analyses of the Scottish referendum which showed there was a well-informed public engaged with the key issues, Ghose added.
“It offered a stark contrast to the vibrant, well-informed, grassroots conversation of the Scottish independence vote – a referendum that left a lasting legacy of ongoing public participation in politics and public life,” she said.
The report confirms many of the criticisms made at the time of the referendum campaign – that it was too negative and voters were left feeling they did not know the facts. It found that, despite high levels of interest throughout the campaign, “people felt consistently ill-informed” and “many people simply did not trust the veracity of certain claims made by both sides”.
Polling by the ERS showed that the intervention of high-profile political figures in the campaign “largely failed to engage or convince voters to their side, with many voters appearing switched off by the usual suspects”.
It appears Cameron’s prominent role in the remain campaign may have backfired, as 29% of voters said he made them more likely to vote leave whereas 14% said he made them want to vote to stay.
The only high-profile figures who, according to the poll, persuaded voters of their position were Boris Johnson, Nigel Farage and Donald Trump, who are “anti-establishment”, pro-Brexit figures.
Of those surveyed, 29% said Johnson had made them more likely to vote leave, compared with 14% who said he made them want to vote remain. Farage persuaded 25% of voters to leave, although 20% said he made them want to stay, while 18% said Trump made them more likely to vote out compared to 12% who said the opposite.
The ERS is calling for a review to ensure future referendums do not repeat the same mistakes.
It makes nine recommendations, including tasking an official public body to intervene when misleading claims are made by the campaigns, and asking Ofcom to conduct a review of an appropriate role for broadcasters to play in referendums.
It also wants votes extended to all 16-year-olds and the early publication of a definitive rulebook to govern campaign conduct, followed by a minimum six-month regulated campaign period.
A Cabinet Office spokesperson said: “The British people spoke decisively at the referendum, with one of the highest turnouts of any vote seen in a UK-wide poll in a generation. They voted to leave the European Union – and this government will deliver on the people’s verdict.”
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