Baroness Varsi defects from Leave to Remain

[Appletreeblossom123]

www.itv.com/news/update/2016-06-19/leading-tory-defects-from-leave-to-remain/

Surprised no one has started a thread on this.

[Calamara]

She is incapable of separating the campaigns from the referendum question. It is ridiculous to change her mind on such an important issue because she doesn't like someone's poster.

This referendum is about governance. It is about whether we want the buck to stop with European Commissioners or Members of Parliament, and whether we want to be ruled by people who we elect directly or by people who are appointed on our behalf.

The referendum is not about policies on immigration, the economy, the environment or any other matter. It is not about which politicians we might like or dislike or who we want to be the next prime minister. And it is certainly not about the tactics used by campaigners.

[shinytorch2]

I didn't know she was backing Leave - it's not like she has made any speeches, or been at all vocal.

[NotCitrus]

We elect MEPs directly. Our elected UK govt appoints commissioners and EU council, along with others. We don't get to vote on the UK's entire second chamber, so there's precious little in it when it comes to democracy.

[Calamara]

MEPs don't set the policy agenda.

The EU is guilty of soft despotism.

[PausingFlatly]

The referendum is not about policies on immigration, the economy, the environment or any other matter.

You don't get to say what the referendum is about for other people.

There have been many posters on MN saying for them it is about immigration. Or about the economy.

[Calamara]

The question is whether you want to be in the European Union. Everything else is secondary and nothing more than a forecast.

We can't know what levels of immigration will the UK will have in the future, whether we are in the EU or not. What we can know is that if we are in the EU immigration policy is decided in Belgium. If we leave, immigration police is decided in the UK.

[MitzyLeFrouf]

It might be a cynical move on her part. She sees Remain winning and wants to be on the winning side.

[IamSlavetotheEU]

Journalists have been struggling to find any information on her backing Leave in the first place. Smells fishy to me.