About the only telling blow that the “Brexit” campaign which hopes to see the UK turn its back on the world’s largest single market and go it alone, is to have stuck the descriptive “Project Fear” on their opponents efforts: it is all a giant conspiracy. It has meant that just about any support from any rational, impartial body, foreign political leader, business grouping or independent expert for maintaining the status quo can be labelled as nothing more than “scaremongering”. The remain campaigners have yet to find a suitable epithet for their opponents, but “Project Lemming” would seem to be a suitable choice, if the argument comes down to one of simple economics (some would claim that it is much broader than this, of course).
The latest body to indulge in some pro-remain scaremongering is the IMF (well, they would, wouldn’t they?). IMF Director, Christine Lagarde (who is suspiciously French, of course) claimed that the consequences of a Brexit on the UK economy would be "pretty bad, to very, very bad" and that it could provoke a technical recession, noting that she had “not seen anything that's positive” about a Brexit.
The IMF believes that a Brexit would cause a "protracted period of heightened uncertainty" may precipitate higher interest rates, harm the City’s status as a global financial centre and provoke volatility in financial markets.
Vote Leave helpfully pointed out that the IMF had been wrong in the past and was wrong now (presumably because it was taking a view contrary to their own) and accused it of “bullying” the British people – presumably with facts: evil!
Former Chancellor, Lord Lamont noted: "This daily avalanche of institutional propaganda is becoming ludicrous and pitiful. Important institutions are being politicised and used to make blood-curdling forecasts. There are plenty of respected individual economists, plenty of respected professional investors, and plenty of entrepreneurs who take a very different view from Christine Lagarde and who have probably been better at foreseeing the future than the IMF." Rather a shame that he failed to take account of these gurus when in office, of course.
Speaking for “Project Fear”, Lord Rose, chairman of Britain Stronger in Europe countered: "This is yet another economic expert that agrees Britain is stronger in Europe, adding to the comments of the Bank of England." Lord Myners, a former Treasury minister and remain campaigner chimed in: "Every major independent economic institution, from the Bank of England to the IMF, has made it clear that leaving the EU would damage the UK economy. This is yet more evidence that leaving is a risk we cannot afford to take."
However, with six weeks or so until the vote, the outcome still hangs in the balance with a near 50:50 split of voters who have made their minds up and a sizeable minority still undecided.