The starting point for the campaigns -- the reason Cameron proposed a referendum in the first place -- was longstanding disaffection with the European project, lately amplified by fears over uncontrolled immigration. Cameron judged that this sentiment couldn't be ignored, partly because it threatened to split his party. He thought he could quell it by negotiating new terms with the EU and by promising to put the deal to voters.  

Europe's other leaders could and should have helped him. They should have recognized him as an ally -- and in doing so would have strengthened the European project. Certainly, to judge by Tusk's comments, they recognize their interest in keeping Britain in. And they surely understand that Europe as a whole needs to change – that anti-EU sentiment is on the rise in many other countries.

Yet they sent Cameron away from his vaunted renegotiation with too little. And the tone of their response was even more damaging than the lack of substance. The message came through loud and clear: It isn't Britain's place to tell Europe how to change.  

Polls can be wrong. There are still enough undecided voters to give Cameron the win he's staked his career on, so long as they split disproportionately in his favor. They probably will, because undecideds usually play it safe. The betting markets, unlike the polls, still expect a vote to stay, though less confidently than before. Nonetheless, it's finally dawning on people that Brexit could happen.

David Fuller's view

This is overly kind to Cameron, and incorrect.  He only called for the referendum as a political move to stem the number of voters who were drifting to Nigel Farage’s UKIP, prior to the UK’s General Election on 7^th May 2015.  It was a shrewd political tactic and it worked. 

Subsequently, campaigns by the two leaders of the Remain campaign – David Cameron and George Osborne – have been widely regarded as disgraceful.  I agree, and they have greatly exaggerated the long-term risks of Brexit for the UK economy, to put it mildly. 

After months of personal indecision, I decided several weeks ago to vote for Leave, mainly because I favour the sovereignty of Parliament and would like to see the UK free to establish its own trade agreements within the global economy. In reaching my personal decision, I am largely in agreement with the Brexit views of Roger Bootle, Ambrose Evans-Pritchard and Sir James Dyson, which I have posted on this site. 

However, I suspect Remain will win.  While a week can be a long time in politics, bookmakers’ odds have shown Remain to be in front throughout the campaign to date.  Bookmakers' odds are usually more accurate than polls, although certainly not infallible.