CUMBRIAN business leaders remain divided on the EU ahead of today's referendum.

Paul Ashley, chairman of Clark Door in Carlisle, and Maria Whitehead, a director and founder of Hawkshead Relish, are among 1,200 business people to sign a letter backing the UK's continued membership.

Other signatories with Cumbrian links include Sir Roger Carr, chairman of Barrow shipyard owner BAE Systems, and Sir Andrew Witty, chief executive of GlaxoSmithKline, a major employer in Ulverston.

Their letter says that businesses "benefit massively" from being part of the single market. But Leave has high-profile Cumbrian supporters too.

Fred Story, of Story Homes and Story Contracting in Carlisle, says Britain can thrive without the “shackles of the EU”. David Hymers, of Queen's Award winner Totalpost Services in Alston, also backs Leave, as does Adrian Rawlinson, managing director of Marl in Ulverston.