But an hour-long Brexit debate at last week’s ITT conference was one of the most informative debates on the topic I’ve heard so far: two politicians and one industry figure speaking for each side, with well-reasoned arguments not just about the impact on the travel and tourism industry, but also the wider economic and legislative impact of leaving the European Union.
That 65% of delegates were preparing to vote Remain before the debate, increasing to 76% after the debate, highlights not just the uncertainty many still feel, but also that after hearing a fair and sensible debate, a significant number of undecideds (and even some Leavers) end up convinced Remain is the preferred option.
Several senior figures in the industry have told me that while their heart says “Out”, their business head says “In”. For my part, my heart and head have always been rather more in agreement, concluding – despite my disdain for many facets of the EU – that being part of something bigger is better not just for security and stability, but also for diversity, for unity and for progress.
Sadly, neither the Leave nor the Remain campaigners, nor many of the national newspapers, have covered themselves in glory in their approach to convincing the nation of their cause.
It’s now looking like it will be a very close run race, with at least one travel company making contingency plans for if Britain does vote Out.
But if people do tick the Leave box when they enter the polling booth next Thursday, I hope they’ll do so only after carefully considering the facts on both sides. Not because they’ve swallowed without question everything they’ve read in the kind of national newspapers that will put anti-EU scare stories on the front cover of their publication instead of the worst mass killing in US history.
