What are the positive reasons for staying in the EU?

[Westdene Seagull]

But the UK is only about 10% of the size of the EU bloc so trading with it will have little impact on EU finances and be way down the list of trading partner priorities which will be topped by Brazil, China, US....hence the current discussions with the US.

Not sure what size has to do with it - what is important is the percentage of say BMW's sales are in the UK.

 

[GreersElbow]

Not sure what size has to do with it - what is important is the percentage of say BMW's sales are in the UK.

And would those sales drop if the UK left the EU? People would still want BMWs, so therefore, there's a demand to be supplied.

 

[Westdene Seagull]

And would those sales drop if the UK left the EU? People would still want BMWs, so therefore, there's a demand to be supplied.

Indeed. It's a myth that we would suddenly see a block on the items we like to buy from other EU countries or even that a tariff would be applied. Not a single pro-EU person or organisation has suggested what that ( imaginary ) tariff might be - I wonder why ?

 

[Herr Tubthumper]

And would those sales drop if the UK left the EU? People would still want BMWs, so therefore, there's a demand to be supplied.

Depends on what happens to the price when the UK is out of the EU.

 

[Harry Wilson's tackle]

Less risk of WW3. With Br'er Farrage in charge, how long would it be before we invade Calais and, minutes, later the Germans blow Whitehawk into a billion tiny pieces. You know they would (regardless of the 'patriotism' of your tattoos).

 

[Westdene Seagull]

Less risk of WW3. With Br'er Farrage in charge, how long would it be before we invade Calais and, minutes, later the Germans blow Whitehawk into a billion tiny pieces. You know they would (regardless of the 'patriotism' of your tattoos).

The EU has rarely kept the peace with the EU borders, NATO has. As yet I've not seen anyone suggesting leaving the EU means we have to leave NATO.

 

[Buzzer]

But then there's an issue for people (like me) who are vaguely leftish but also tend to opposed to the EU. I shudder at the thought of voting for the crazies in UKIP but nearly all the other parties are pro-EU, I do feel that I'll end up for voting for an EU party and it's not particularly comfortable.

Vague-ish right-wingers like me are in the same boat, sort of. I've no trust in the Tories anymore and I would never ever ever consider UKIP for the same reasons as you. I am firmly of the belief that we should be out of the EU but don't want to vote for any of the parties that offer that in their manifesto.

The thought of Farage's triumphalist grin in the next EU elections is not a pretty one.

 

[Herr Tubthumper]

Indeed. It's a myth that we would suddenly see a block on the items we like to buy from other EU countries or even that a tariff would be applied. Not a single pro-EU person or organisation has suggested what that ( imaginary ) tariff might be - I wonder why ?

No one has said anything about blocks or tariffs because there probably won't be any. The issue is more to do with products between the EU and its agreed trading partners being cheaper. The EU and the US are not discussing the current agreement to make things more expensive between them are they? Also, the US has said it will discuss with the EU but doubts it will have the stomach to go through all the hassle a second time just for the UK. And the EU will surely concentrate on itself, Brazil, US and china first.

 

[beorhthelm]

Depends on what happens to the price when the UK is out of the EU.

nothing as the German car industry would lobby hard to arrange a trade agreement with 1st/2nd largest export market (depend on the on the marque).

...Also, the US has said it will discuss with the EU but doubts it will have the stomach to go through all the hassle a second time just for the UK.

it has been noted that the "hassle" is many due to trying to negotiate through a dozen plus countries with vested interested. for example a particular sticking point apparently is wine, as the French want to protect their domestic makers. and so on though hundreds of products groups. negotiating with one country, with a single set of requirements may be considered far easier.

 

[Herr Tubthumper]

Indeed. It's a myth that we would suddenly see a block on the items we like to buy from other EU countries or even that a tariff would be applied. Not a single pro-EU person or organisation has suggested what that ( imaginary ) tariff might be - I wonder why ?

Apart from the music threads all I seem to do on NSC is discuss the same issues and argue the same points with the same small bunch of dominant characters. I really need to get another hobby or read more books or something.

 

[Harry Wilson's tackle]

The EU has rarely kept the peace with the EU borders, NATO has. As yet I've not seen anyone suggesting leaving the EU means we have to leave NATO.

The EU has prevented war within the borders. That's all we can influence, and that's good enough for me. Sod the Balkans. Unless they invade . . . .

Besides, I like a club with Germany in it. Leave the buggers isolated and they brood. And brooding Germans is not comfortable. Keep them in the tent and all they think about is 'shame' (a real and interesting German concept that does not exist in the UK).

Connectivity quells tribalism. Note that since the informal inter Arab harmony evaporated 10 or so years ago, the middle east has become a rats' nest of ranting incoherentalists . . .

 

[Westdene Seagull]

Apart from the music threads all I seem to do on NSC is discuss the same issues and argue the same points with the same small bunch of dominant characters. I really need to get another hobby or read more books or something.

Or go out to a nice restaurant and review it

 

[Leighgull]

The East Upper is the place to be on a Saturday afternoon...you're talking about The Amex right

No. No it isn't "the place to be" on Saturday or any day for that matter.

Unless the rest of the sentence is "asleep" or "leaving on 80 minutes"

 

[Leighgull]

Nice cheese and people to feel sorry for.

 

[disgruntled h blocker]

People have to realise there is no 'British Empire' to trade with anymore, and the EU allows open-borders trading for both products and skills. If we left the EU, we would have to renegotiate these with the Europe. Also, a lot of manufacturing firms are based in the UK because they are inside the EU, so Honda, Nissan and the like do not have to be concerned with respective import/trade tariffs.

People may bemoan EU's laws, but you need to remember that certain things like the Working Time Directive are there to protect employees, and is clearly something which key principals would be scrapped if UKIP or any party of that type would power in the UK.

 

[brightn'ove]

I do not want to have to queue for hours in the non-eu passport control line at European airports.

 

[osgood]

Ive read somewhere that a majority of businessmen want to stay in the EU.

is that British businessmen ?

if so, where did you read this ?

 

[Biffer]

I can only imagine that was in the Guardian or quite possibly a spoof piece somewhere.

 

[Graymac]

Stay in the Eu, but have a primeminster with some balls to get back some of the powers we have given away.
Fed up with these gutless leaders who are trying to please everyone & end up pleasing no one.

 

[pastafarian]

People may bemoan EU's laws, but you need to remember that certain things like the Working Time Directive are there to protect employees, and is clearly something which key principals would be scrapped if UKIP or any party of that type would power in the UK.

the working time directive is a classic case of EU meddling,simply put there are countries that like the WTD and some countries that do not.This is meddling in social policy and is an area that should be left up to individual nation-states.Even the pro-European Centre for European Reform said in a report 3 months ago this directive "is flawed in many ways".