Britain Stronger in Europe and Vote Leave are expected to focus on core messages in speeches and rallies.
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The winning campaign teams will now have access to a spending limit of £7 million, one free distribution of information to voters through a leaflet, the use of certain public rooms and referendum campaign broadcasts.
Ukip leader Nigel Farage, a supporter of Grassroots Out, last night congratulated Vote Leave, insisting both groups could work together for the goal of an independent UK.
He added: “It is to be regretted that this process may put the referendum back until October, but if we are to avoid the most important vote of our lives being rigged then I feel duty bound to take this course of action”.
Electoral Commission chief executive Claire Bassett said the decision on designation on the leave side was made to the applicant “which appears to us to represent those campaigning for that outcome to the greatest extent”.
Vote Leave, backed by senior Conservative Party members including Boris Johnson, will lead the “out” side while the cross-party Britain Stronger in Europe will front the “in” side.
“I am thoroughly unsatisfied with the Electoral Commission’s decision for a variety of reasons that I will be making clear in my application for judicial review”, he said. It was deemed by the Electoral Commission to have broader cross-party support than its main rival, Grassroots Out, which relied heavily on UKIP’s leader, Nigel Farage and the financial backing of Arron Banks, a wealthy businessman.
If they were all part of a single organisation they would only be able to spend £700,000 in total compared to around £5 million if they register separately.
Although Vote Leave said they would work with others who wanted to campaign for an “Out” vote, some of those aligned with Grassroots Out said they would contest the decision.
“We will work closely with all those who want to see the United Kingdom set free to determine its own destiny”.
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There was only one applicant for designation to be lead campaigner for the “Remain” outcome, “The In Campaign Ltd” and the Commission decided that it adequately represented those campaigning for this outcome.
Vote Leave, the designated anti-EU campaign, is focusing on the health service as the referendum battle begins in earnest, accusing the Government of failing to give the NHS “the funding it needs”.
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Leave.EU “will just carry on as it is; they’re not allowed to spend as much money but they’ll just fragment it among lots and lots of different groups”, Simon Hix, professor of political science at the London School of Economics, told reporters at a briefing on Thursday before Banks announced his decision.
