EXCLUSIVE

DAVID Cameron today makes his own dramatic plea for Worcester people to back the EU - telling this newspaper the city's tourism, its manufacturing base and even cider is at "risk" under Brexit.

The Prime Minister has exclusively revealed how he fears for major Worcestershire tourist attractions like Worcester Cathedral and the Severn Valley Railway, and that county food and farming face taking a hit if Britain quits.

The PM also told the Worcester News major city companies like Yamazaki Mazak and Worcester Bosch, which employ 1,500 people locally, would "feel it very personally" if the UK backs Brexit.

In a passionate rallying call to wavering county voters, he also pointed to the University of Worcester and Heart of Worcestershire College bosses backing Remain.

Mr Cameron's open letter, an intervention carefully co-ordinated after days of polling which has spooked Number 10, also cites Worcestershire cider having "special protected status" inside the EU - suggesting that would be at risk.

He says if "travel was made more complicated" the implications for the likes of Worcester Cathedral, widely considered one of Britain's most picturesque Anglican cathedrals, and the Severn Valley Railway could be stark.

"68 per cent of overseas visitors who come to this region come from the EU, taking in sights like Worcester Cathedral and the Severn Valley Railway," he says.

"How would that industry be affected if their travel was made more complicated?"

The Severn Valley Railway, in Bewdley, continues to break its own records for visitor numbers.

It came on a day where Worcester become one of the country's key locations for referendum campaigning yesterday, with UKIP visiting the city to reveal its bright purple 'Project Fact' Battlebus.

The bus will be touring the Midlands, Wales and parts of the North West taking in 49 different locations - as we reveal on page 9 of today's newspaper and on this website.

Mr Cameron's personal letter, 750 impassioned words, seeks to level with Worcestershire voters by saying "the EU isn't perfect - far from it".

He urged Worcester News readers to think again about Brexit, saying: "Yes, this country has problems, but we won't solve any of them by wrecking our economy.

"Inside Europe Worcestershire, like the rest of the country, is stronger, safer and better off - I say: don't take the risk of leaving".

We revealed last month how Worcester Bosch and Yamazaki Mazak both came out and backed Remain.

DAVID CAMERON'S LETTER IN FULL

"In six days the people of Worcestershire will go to the polls in a once-in-a-generation referendum.

This isn’t like a general election, the consequences will be felt for decades to come – perhaps a lifetime.

People might think this debate is irrelevant to them, but it matters to us all.

You only have to look around Worcestershire to see why remaining in a reformed EU is so important to the jobs people do, the prices they pay in the shops, the growth of the economy and the opportunities for young people.

Take manufacturing. EU membership gives us access to the Single Market of 500 million people, to whom we can sell without tariffs or barriers.

As a result, nearly half of what we sell abroad goes to the EU. So many livelihoods – millions – are tied to this trade, whether directly or indirectly.

Workers in Worcestershire feel that very personally.

Look at Mazak, in Warndon, 85 per cent of its business comes from the EU, supporting hundreds of jobs here.

Worcester Bosch, which employs 1,000 people, is in a similar position - bosses have spoken out about how important remaining in Europe is to them.

In fact, it is because of this Single Market access that nearly 80 per cent of overseas companies say they wanted to invest in this country in the first place.

It’s clear from the Leave campaign – and from Donald Tusk, President of the European Council – that leaving the EU would mean leaving the Single Market. What would that mean in practice?

It could mean tariffs on our goods. It could mean rules would be set surrounding our trade with Europe – and we’d no longer have any say on them.

People say we could trade with the rest of the world instead. But that’s not going to make up for our lost trade with the EU.

It’s no wonder, then, that nine out of ten economists are all agreed on the need to remain – and that the IMF and Bank of England have said leaving would lead to recession.

But it’s not just our businesses that benefit from EU membership.

Look at research and education – the extra funding and scope for collaboration that EU membership gives us access to is vital, and the University of Worcester and Heart of Worcestershire College have both underlined this fact. It’s important to tourism, too.

68 per cent of overseas visitors who come to this region come from the EU, taking in sights like Worcester Cathedral and the Severn Valley Railway.

How would that industry be affected if their travel was made more complicated?

Food and farming also rely on EU membership.

For a start, there’s the £1.5 billion that farmers in this region received between 2007 and 2013. There’s the fact that they can export their produce to the EU without tariffs – and that, within that market, we can remove barriers, as we did when we overturned France’s beef ban.

Then there are the types of produce that are protected.

For example, Worcestershire cider has protected status in Europe – something Britain pushed for, and which benefits the local drinks industry.

It’s clear these benefits, which support so many jobs, bring in so much investment into our country, and help pay for the public services we rely upon, outweigh the costs.

Leave campaigners say we would save the money we spend on membership. But we wouldn’t.

Because we’d have a smaller economy, and therefore less to spend on things like the NHS.

Leave campaigners have no plan for life outside Europe. They can’t say what our relationship with the EU would be.

All they’ve done is make a load of unfunded policy proposals. And their reaction when confronted with the prospect of a plummeting pound: "so what?" It really is the definition of a leap in the dark.

The EU isn’t perfect – far from it. But it will affect us whether we’re in or out. These are uncertain times for our economy and our national security.

We ought to be in there, driving the big decisions, taking advantage of the Single Market, and making it work for us.

Yes, this country has problem - but we won’t solve any of them by wrecking our economy.

Inside Europe, Worcestershire, like the rest of the country, is stronger, safer and better off.

I say: don’t take the risk of leaving - do what is right for your family’s future. And on June 23rd vote to remain."