UK government to table amendments to campaigning on EU referendum
The British government is set to change its planned rules on campaigning in the referendum on the country’s membership of the European Union (EU) after harsh criticism from Eurosceptic Conservative MPs.
Restrictions on the way ministers can campaign in the run-up to the vote were proposed to be lifted.
However, critics believed this would mean the pro-EU campaign would benefit from the "machinery of government", leading the UK to rethink its plans for campaign restrictions "with exceptions".
Details of the changes will be outlined later on Wednesday, when amendments will be tabled to the EU Referendum Bill.
The move came a day after British prime minister David Cameron accepted a recommendation by the Electoral Commission to change the way voters will decide. Citizens will be asked whether they want the UK to "remain in" or "leave" the EU, rather than ticking a "Yes" or "No" box in the referendum, which could be held before the end of 2017.
Read more: UK referendum on EU membership could come before end of 2017
The Electoral Commission said that the original question raised concerns about the "potential legitimacy" of the referendum result.
In May Cameron outlined who would be allowed to vote in the referendum: adults from the age of 18, Irish and Commonwealth citizens residents in the UK and British citizens who have lived abroad for less than 15 years.
Read more: Cameron outlines who will be allowed to vote in the UK's EU referendum
EU nationals living in the UK will not have the chance to vote, regardless of how long they have been in the country. As a result, 1m EU citizens will be left out of the polling stations.
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