Claws come out as British cats debate Brexit

The fur is flying on social media as Britons prepare to vote on Thursday on whether the UK should remain in the EU.

The hashtags #CatsAgainstBrexit and #CatsForBrexit flooded Twitter on Monday and Tuesday, as pro- and anti-Brexit citizens tweeted feline photos and messages imploring voters to side with them in the referendum.

The vote comes amid warnings from world leaders, investors and companies that a decision to leave the 28-nation bloc would diminish the UK’s influence, unleash turmoil on markets and send shock waves across the Western world.

"Naughty Cat worries we'll be on the outside looking in, missing influence we once had #CatsAgainstBrexit," tweeted Nicola Blackwood, a Conservative politician and member of parliament for Oxford West and Abingdon, late on Monday.

The tweet included a photo of a cat looking through a glass window.

"My cat is praying for #Brexit #CatsForBrexit," tweeted Maria Caulfield, a Conservative MP for Lewes, along with an image of a cat covering its face with its paws.

Others found comic relief in the hashtags, likening the Brexit debate to the cats’ sometimes fickle behaviour.

“We’re voting in. Are you sure? In. Or out? Definitely in. In, okay. Don’t shut the door. #CatsAgainstBrexit #fickle,” tweeted GFDavies, with a photo of two cats standing in a doorway.

The probability of a Brexit by 2017 was at 26 per cent on Tuesday, according to the online betting platform PredictIt.

Reuters