CHANCELLOR George Osborne has warned Leave-leaning Sussex immigration could grow if we vote for Brexit.

He claimed that immigration numbers could rise under an Australian-style points based system being proposed by Leave campaigners during a visit to the Shoreham offices of global transport engineering firm Ricardo.

The Chancellor also described Nigel Farage’s vision of Britain as “mean, narrow and divisive” and said that the Ukip leader’s campaigning, most notably the controversial Breaking Point poster, was turning people away from Leave to Remain.

As exclusively revealed in Yesterday's Argus Mr Osborne warned that leaving the EU could cost Sussex 12,000 jobs and also hit residents’ house prices should the county and country vote leave in two days’ time.

Yesterday Mr Osborne also indicated he would stay in the role even in the event of a Leave vote despite dozens of his own party’s MPs saying his position would become untenable.

The 45-year-old Chancellor said that figures right across the business spectrum from entrepreneur Sir Richard Branson, global brands such as The Premier League, large manufacturers and small businesses all backed Britain remaining in the EU.

He told The Argus: “With just days to go now, people all want to focus on what’s at stake, economically the risks to this country if we leave and the opportunities if we remain.

“Take Sussex, potentially 12,000 jobs in the county alone would be lost if we leave.

“The overwhelming voice of business is that there is a real risk to jobs, a real risk to the economy, a risk to public services if we cannot afford public services and a risk to peoples’ tax bills if we vote leave.

“That combined with people on the other side of the immigration debate such as Nigel Farage when he revealed that vision of Britain, people who were thinking of voting Leave are now coming over to the Remain side.”

Referendum campaigning resumed again on Sunday following the death of Labour MP Jo Cox with Vote Leave chairwoman Gisela Stuart claiming Brexit was the only way to "take back control" on immigration.

But Mr Osborne questioned whether Brexit would effectively curb current immigration numbers.

He said: “If we look at the arguments being made, it seems to be crazy to try and manage the immigration system by crashing our economy.

“If you look carefully at what the Leave campaign is saying, if they get their way immigration could go up.

“The system they are proposing would take more people from around the world and would not be addressing our immigration issues either.

“Nigel Farage’s vision of Britain is mean and narrow and divisive, I don’t believe the people of Sussex want that to be realised.”

GEORGE OF ALL TRADES AND MASTER OF...?

IT HAS become a common sight to see Chancellor George Osborne don a hard hat and hi-vis jacket over the past 14 months on first the general election and then the referendum campaign trail.

It has also become a running joke that he is trying to fuel the economic recovery himself by driving trains, using power drills, firing up welding torches and generally getting stuck in on the building site.

But seeing him in action yesterday at Ricardo in Shoreham bolting down a cylinder head on the McLaren M838T 3.8-litre twin-turbo V8 engine, one might have thought he was exploring a possible new career move with his political future on the line along with the country’s on Thursday.

A leave vote would certainly put his position in question with more than 50 Conservative MPs writing last week they would oppose his £30 billion Brexit cuts budget and said his threat made his position “untenable”.

Wearing white gloves in the spotless high-tech factory, the Chancellor resembled a magician but he seems to have lost his touch a little of late with two disastrous budgets requiring u-turns and rethinks.

He has gone from leader-in-waiting to also-ran with his dire economic warnings seeming to have little impact on voters’ intentions.

Yesterday he was putting a brave face on that prospect when interviewed by The Argus.

He said: “I serve David Cameron as chancellor and he has said he is remaining whatever the outcome.

“But this is not really about individual political careers, it is about making this decision which could last for many decades.”

At least one thing went smoothly for Mr Osborne yesterday, the train from Westminster to Shoreham was remarkably on time and he fared much better than his Conservative colleague David Cameron who had to jump in the car for his West Sussex visit last week after five cancellations in a row.