Leave camp makes early running, causing plunge in value of sterling, as politicians begin blame game over vitriolic tone of campaign

The result of Britain’s referendum on EU membership is on a knife-edge after a series of big wins for leave in the early results, as politicians on all sides began apportioning blame over the bitter campaign.

The result in Sunderland, a 61.3% vote for leave against 38.7% for remain, was quickly followed by a plunge in the value of sterling on global markets. There was also a win for remain in Newcastle, although the 54% to 46% split was not as large a victory as had been forecast given the city’s large number of students.

But as London and Scotland’s results started to come in the remain vote crept back up leaving it firmly on a knife-edge.

In other early results, leave got a larger than expected 70% in Hartlepool. Basildon’s 68.6% vote to leave was anticipated.

John Curtice, the elections expert who is number-crunching for the BBC, said the leave camp were the favourites to win on the basis of results so far. “But there is still a very long way to go,” he cautioned.

The early results prompted some remain campaigners to embark on the blame game with both Labour and Conservative circles hitting out at Jeremy Corbyn, the Labour leader, for failing to do enough, while others accused the SNP of running a “lacklustre” campaign after a suggestion that turnout was lower than hoped for in Scotland.

Welsh leave campaigners at the central counting centre on Deeside said they were “very optimistic” that Wales will vote to leave Europe. Betting exchanges appeared to be shifting toward a likely Brexit, with leave overtaking remain on Betfair for the first time at about 2am.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Leave supporters celebrate the result in Sunderland. Photograph: Toby Melville/Reuters

The Ukip leader, Nigel Farage, had said earlier that it “looks like remain will edge it” after a poll published shortly after the conclusion of voting at 10pm.

One source from the official Vote Leave group said the Ukip leader had been “unhelpful” throughout the final week, including when he unveiled a poster of fleeing refugees under the words “breaking point”.



The initial results contradicted the late polling. YouGov polled almost 5,000 people on Wednesday and found that the remain camp was just in front at 51%. Returning to the same people on the day of the vote, the number edged up to 52%.



Joe Twyman, head of political and social research at the polling company, said: “Based on the move that we’ve seen today, and on the trends that we’ve seen in our data and on historical precedents, we expect the United Kingdom to remain in the EU, but it is too early to know for definite.”



The shadow chancellor, John McDonnell, said he believed about two-thirds of Labour voters had backed remain. McDonnell said Cameron would have to consider his position in the case of Brexit, but argued that either way he would be beholden to the right of the Conservative party.

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He also defended his party leader’s handling of Labour’s campaign, saying Corbyn was aware that the British public were “basically Eurosceptic to a certain extent, but believes remain is the best thing”.

A Labour source admitted that a “significant minority” of the party’s voters had plumped to leave the EU, but argued that this was not a protest at Corbyn’s leadership but “a means to kick a Conservative government that is out of touch … [and] has failed to rebalance the economy”.

Farage, who had said earlier that he thought Britain had voted to stay in the EU based on “what I know from some of my friends in the financial markets who have done some big polling”, later said that it would be “very tight”.

Following the Sunderland result, there was another jolt for remain when leave won in Swindon – a “swing” town of middle England – with a 54.7% vote.

Among leading remain figures, the Labour MP Chuka Umunna said earlier he was “quietly confident” of a victory. However, he later said: “If you were to force me to call it I would say that remain could just get it but it could go the other way.”

“We are a divided country – that is the big conclusion you can draw from this EU referendum campaign.”

Earlier, investors had welcomed initial indications of a strong remain vote, at one point sending the pound above $1.50 – its highest level since December. The FTSE 100 index of Britain’s largest listed companies was also forecast to open strongly on Friday. However, one currency broker warned of a “biblical” market collapse if the polls were proved wrong.

There was good news, though, for David Cameron after 84 Conservative MPs who have campaigned for out, including Boris Johnson, Michael Gove, Chris Grayling and Priti Patel, wrote to the prime minister to thank him for offering them the referendum and calling on him to stay in position whatever the outcome.

The letter, organised by Robert Syms and delivered to Cameron’s parliamentary private secretary, Gavin Williamson, said they felt he had a “mandate and a duty to continue leading the nation implementing our 2015 manifesto”. The move could anger a handful of die-hard Eurosceptics who want the prime minister gone.

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But Grayling, one of the cabinet ministers who has been campaigning for out, told the Guardian: “Regardless of the result of the referendum, the Conservative party has to get behind David Cameron and unite. We have a big job to do in the country; it is only 15 months since we won our first majority since 1992.”

The Northern Ireland secretary, Theresa Villiers, who is also a leave campaigner and another signatory of the letter, said her instinct was that remain had won. She said: “I would put it down to ‘project fear’ succeeding”.

A record 46.5 million voters across the UK and Gibraltar were registered to vote in the historic referendum, with early indications suggesting a high turnout in areas with strong support for remain and those where Brexit is more popular.





Facebook Twitter Pinterest Remain campaigners Nicky Morgan, centre, and Chuka Umunna await the reuslts at London’s Royal Festival Hall. Photograph: Rob Stothard/PA

Voters in London complained on social media that they might miss out on the opportunity to vote after severe weather in southern England caused chaos across transport networks.

Both Cameron and Corbyn were preparing to reach out on Friday to the millions of British people who voted to leave the EU, as they seek to heal the wounds of a bitterly fought referendum that has divided the nation.

The Conservative leader will deliver a speech on Friday morning that will attempt to reach out across the divide and reassure the millions of individuals who voted against him that his government has listened to their concerns over immigration, public services and democracy.





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The Labour leader plans to tour the party’s traditional working-class seats over the summer, making the case for policies to soften the impact of immigration on low-paid workers – including banning zero-hours contracts and cracking down on unscrupulous employers.

Shadow ministers from outside London, including Lisa Nandy, Lucy Powell and Jon Trickett, are also expected to be given a more prominent public role in reaching out to disillusioned Labour supporters.





Deborah Mattinson, founding director of Britain Thinks, said the battle showed how divided Britain was becoming. “The referendum campaign has highlighted the deepening divide in Britain today. Remain leaners are younger, educated, and more affluent; leave leaners are older, less well off and less likely to have formal qualifications,” she said.

“But the greater difference is in their attitudes – each group views the other with suspicion, even contempt. Whatever the outcome tonight, the challenge will be how to heal our fractured nation.”

Both camps fought bitterly until the polls closed, with emails in the final hours sent by leading campaigners, including Boris Johnson. The message, designed to look personal with “sent from my iPhone” at the end of the message, told voters: “Don’t lose this chance to make today our Independence Day!!!”

One Londoner tweeted a picture of the Tory MP on the underground, claiming that Johnson had asked him how he voted, before conceding that his side was likely to lose the election.