Final Say: Two-thirds of students demand referendum on Brexit deal

Three in five believe Brexit will not deliver a good deal for students

Two-thirds of students demand a Final Say on the Brexit deal in the largest poll of its kind so far.

A National Union of Students survey, shared exclusively with The Independent, has revealed three in five students (60 per cent) believe Brexit will not deliver a good deal for them.

And nearly two in three (65 per cent) do not believe their voices and interests have been reflected in the Brexit negotiations, according to the poll of more than 2,000 students.

Nearly half of students said the end of free movement of people would have the biggest impact on them, while more than a quarter said leaving the customs union was their greatest concern.

Brexit has an important influence over students when it comes to voting intentions, the survey suggests, with 62 per cent reporting it would have a strong impact on who they would vote for.

More than a third (35 per cent) of students said they would vote for Labour, while just over a fifth said they did not know who they would vote for. Some 18 per cent said they would vote Conservative.

The findings – showing two in three students believe there should be a referendum on the final deal for Britain’s exit from the EU – came as campaigners handed in petitions carrying almost 1.5 million names to Downing Street calling for a second referendum.

The group representing The Independent’s Final Say campaign and the People’s Vote initiative handed over the petitions as Theresa May prepared for a five-day Commons debate on her deal.

Last week, Sam Gyimah, the former universities minister, said a fresh Brexit referendum might be the “most sensible” path if the prime minister’s deal is voted down in the Commons, just hours after he resigned from his government role.

Amatey Doku, vice president for higher education of the National Union of Students (NUS), said: “Whether there is another general election in one, two, or five years – students are telling us that the decisions which are made now will have a decisive impact on how they choose to vote.

“A consistent majority of students believe they deserve a final say on this disastrous deal. That’s why the best solution, for the country and the politicians who will be asking for our vote sooner, is to act decisively and support our call for a vote on the deal, before it’s too late.”