Kingsclere venue for lively EU Referendum hustings

Villagers divided in a show of hands on the issue

KINGSCLERE was the venue for a lively EU Referendum hustings on Friday evening, hosted by the MP for North West Hampshire.

Every seat was taken at Kingsclere’s Fieldgate Centre, in Fieldgate Drive, which was packed with more than 150 people for the event, hosted by Kit Malthouse, ahead of the UK’s EU Referendum next Thursday.

Mr Malthouse said that the Kingsclere hustings proved a fantastic opportunity to learn more about the European Union Referendum, with debate and discussion from both sides.

“Britain will be taking a decision on the most important constitutional question in decades with profound ramifications for our democracy and what kind of country we will be,” said Mr Malthouse.

“It’s vital that everyone engages and makes an informed decision.”

Mr Malthouse, who had previously revealed that he is in favour of leaving the EU, was joined on stage by former Conservative minister, Sir Tim Sainsbury, who lives locally, and the Conservative MP for Aldershot, Sir Gerald Howarth.

Sir Tim argued that Britain is better off in the EU, focusing on the benefits of access to the Single Market, while Sir Gerald claimed the EU was committed to ever-closer union and wanted to build a super state at the expense of national democracies.

The debate was then thrown open to the floor, with wide-ranging questions raised, from the topic of Turkish admission to the EU, to whether, if outside the EU, the UK would continue participating in European science programmes and also how the UK would continue to fight climate change.

A show of hands on the night revealed a 50:50 split in the audience.

The Kingsclere vote echoed national opinion polls, which show the ‘leave’ and ‘remain’ camps neck and neck alongside a dwindling number of undecided voters, with the final outcome equally uncertain.

Speaking afterwards, Mr Malthouse said: “This vote is a once-in-a-lifetime chance to decide what kind of country we are going to be.”

The hustings were the second hosted by Mr Malthouse in his North West Hampshire constituency, following a similar event in Andover on May 19.

Mr Malthouse stepped in to chair the meeting after Isabel Hardman, a political journalist and the assistant editor of The Spectator, was unable to attend, due to a family emergency.