MP Jesse Norman has warned that the increasingly heated arguments on both sides of the EU referendum could lead to people becoming more disillusioned by politics and even to the splitting of the Conservative Party.

The MP, who has drawn both criticism and praise for his unusual stance in not declaring which way he intends to vote, has written about the issue in a national newspaper.

In the article written for the Guardian newspaper he said the EU debate is ‘in the sewer’. He said:?“Neither campaign has shown any great scrupulousness in arguing its case.” And he derides both sides for lack of clear, truthful information.

The MP has organised several well-attended meetings, including one at the Larruperz Centre Ross-on-Wye, which he planned in order to give local residents more information.

Mr Norman said that he has ‘spoken to hundreds of voters, sent thousands of emails, disseminated vast amounts of information, written widely and led an open public debate in my constituency,’ and he said: “the British people are not stupid, they are perfectly capable of assessing complex, nuanced arguments, and they do not deserve to be treated like children.”

He concluded:?“Whatever the final outcome, the shrillness of the present debate is certain to fuel voter disillusionment and reduce public trust still further, something Britain can ill afford given the rise in populist identity politics. And its apparent personal bitterness threatens to split the Conservative Party, at a time when the government is already struggling to push legislation through parliament.

“If out wins, all bets are surely off. But if in triumphs, the risk is of years of internal party dispute, and political stasis.”