How the TUC is doing Labour’s job for them in getting the EU vote out

Labour voters will prove crucial in determining the outcome of the EU referendum, which makes the party’s near silence on the issue all the more surprising. Whilst the Labour leadership maintain their reticence, however, the TUC has stepped in with a report out today. In it, the TUC warns that Brexit would cut pay by an average of £38 a week by 2030. Brexit will also send Britain into a ‘steep decline’, Frances O’Grady, the TUC’s General Secretary says. Given that the maths behind this hasn’t been published yet, it’s difficult to know how the figures were compiled. It’s also probably good to be sceptical of such an exact calculation on hypothetical scenarios. But nonetheless, the TUC’s report is likely to cut through in a way that similar figures put out by the Treasury just won’t for Labour party members. The TUC has some 5.8million members, and given how close the polls appear to be suggesting the referendum will be, that’s a portion of the electorate who could prove decisive in this contest.