A TEAM of people who support leaving the EU have been campaigning in Alton over the last few weeks under the ‘Vote Leave’ umbrella.

This has involved leafleting virtually the entire town, talking to residents, and holding a street stall. The main aim has been to inform so that people can make up their own minds.

The team is made up of ordinary people from across the political divide, including supporters of the Conservative Party, Labour and UKIP, as well as supporters of no particular party at all. What unites the team is a conviction that taking back control represents the most positive future for the UK.

Vote Leave campaigner Ian Holliday said: “The campaign team have been heartened by how unfailingly polite the people of Alton have been when approached, regardless of which side of the EU argument they are on. It’s clear that everyone is taking their decision very seriously and carefully weighing up the information provided to them by the opposing camps.”

Regarding the national campaign, Mr Holliday questions the credibility of predictions made recently by a number of bodies about the potential impact on the UK economy of any Brexit. He said: “In the early 2000s many of these bodies advocated that the UK economy had a poor future outside the Euro and absolutely none of them predicted the major recession that occurred in 2008, so why should anyone believe them now?”

On the fundamental reasons for leaving, fellow out vote campaigner Bill Blake said: “I am voting to leave because I reject the view of the Prime Minister that it is economically better for the UK to remain a member of the EU. I want our sovereignty back and I fear for the future of my country unless the current uncontrolled immigration can be halted.”

Commenting on the campaign, Philip Aiston, Vote Leave co-ordinator for the East Hampshire constituency stated: “It is clear that this referendum is much more significant to the long-term future of the UK than a normal election. It is about what sort of country we want the UK to be.

“Across many areas, such as our trading relationships, our laws, tax rates, immigration and security, it is fundamentally about who has control over the UK and what is best for its people. Are we really happy for the UK to be increasingly run by a distant set of unelected bureaucrats in Brussels over whom we seem to have very limited influence? I believe that Vote Leave sets out a positive global vision for the future of what is the world’s fifth biggest economy.”

* The Alton Herald is joining forces with Alton Chamber of Commerce and Industry to host a public debate on EU membership prior to the referendum. Staring at 6.30pm today at Alton Assembly Rooms, the debate will feature a well-informed panel from both Remain and Leave camps, with questions invited from the floor.