One in three Britons would vote to stay in the European Union (EU) in the upcoming referendum, according to a poll Monday.

UK Prime Minister David Cameron last month promised to hold a vote in 2017 on whether Britain should remain in the EU.

A poll by Harris Interactive for the Financial Times showed 50% of people would vote to get out of the EU, while 33% would stay in and 17% would not vote either way.

Of those who voted "out", 12% said they would "definitely" change their point of view if there was a successful renegotiation, while another 47% said "yes, possibly" to the idea that they could revise their vote.

But 41% of those wanting Britain to withdraw would definitely not change their mind, the poll showed.

The results underline the scale of Cameron's task as he votes to stay in the EU.

In January he said he would campaign for Britain to remain a part of the bloc "with all my heart and soul", as long as he repatriates powers.

Cameron's decision to hold the so called in-out referendum has been criticised by France, Germany and the US.

However, the prime minister is confident he will be able to convince the public of the advantages of staying in the EU so long as he can renegotiate the relationship.

Britain last held a vote on staying in Europe in 1975, with 67.2% in favour of European membership and 32.8 % against.

RD

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