Extract from the Sunday Times-
"Our cross-party clout relied mostly on Labour, but it was Awol. Jeremy Corbyn delivered a handful of desultory speeches about remain and then went on holiday. Perhaps Corbyn wanted remain to lose."
Sunday times today , page 11 second column.
This is very misleading. Corbyn did not really control much of the Labour media scene. Referendum campaign was set up before he became leader. Lord Mandelson was very active. Straw had some contacts. Alan Johnson had an official role. Maybe there will be more on this in the book. But the para above is all I can find so far.
When in doubt blame Corbyn, But Cameron could consider how the Remain case would have gained if Corbyn arguments had been better reported. Worker rights, environment standards, appeal to a non Cameron audience but might have shifted the result.
In the discussion around the book worth asking again how the decisions were made as to who appeared on which show. Corbyn ended up on late night chat Channel 4. I thought effective in reaching a youth audience. 70% enthusiasm higher than came over from Cameron in his mode when negotiating with EU. Why did Channel 4 block Corbyn from uploading the complete clip to YouTube ? The myth that Corbyn was "on holiday" can only be claimed in the absence of such evidence.
Towards the end of the referendum Cameron noticed bad polls. The Observer reported that space was to be cleared on the media schedule for Labour to reach a wider audience. This turned out to be Gordon Brown and Lord Darling on a platform shared with George Osborne. Their joint presentation was described by Leave as a "punishment budget". Who decided on this approach who was somehow connected to Labour? I don't think it was Corbyn. "I am not a catastrophist" was a mild remark to show some reservation on most of the Remain case.
There may well be more in the book. But meanwhile clues welcome on what happened.
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