EU referendum

[Moriati]

Then it wont take you long to tell us what exactly they are as you have them at your fingertips will it ?, in fact a lot quicker than scoping out tripe like what the CBI official mouthpieces have to say (And there numbers are wildly inaccurate if the treasury are to be believed, look that one up ;0) .

Nor is playing with % & GDP to rig your point of view, what exactly is the EU GDP in good old pound notes or euro`s if you want to convert ours to euro`s.

The EU has trade agreements with countries having a combined GDP of $7.7 trillion, but then Chile has trade agreements with countries totaling $58.3 trillion, maths are a woman when you want to play with them.

I don't think you have taken the 'Rotterdam/Antwerp' factor into your summary.

 

[blueonblue]

Does ordinary water run off your back too, or is it just duck water ?

 

[blueonblue]

I don't think you have taken the 'Rotterdam/Antwerp' factor into your summary.

Thats just playing with numbers and does f*ck all to the bottom line in reality, I was going to count potato crops but figured the paddys will still want to sell to us no matter what the f*cking EU says

 

[Moriati]

Thats just playing with numbers and does f*ck all to the bottom line in reality, I was going to count potato crops but figured the paddys will still want to sell to us no matter what the f*cking EU says

Skewed.

 

[blueonblue]

Skewed.

As are most of the numbers from BOTH sides to be fair, thats why its foolish to base any decisions on those, the only honest answer is "We dont know" an you will never get that, its all could,should, and maybe and evidence of nothing.

We know for a fact the EU is corrupt, we know for a fact that open borders are causing problems, we know for a fact that paying a kick back on every trade makes things cost more.

 

[AlgarveBlu]

Majority of swedes would want to leave the eu if the uk comes out.

http://www.euractiv.com/section/uk-...of-swedes-want-to-leave-eu-in-case-of-brexit/

This is what a lot of the remain camp don't get is that there are huge swathes of citizens from the wealthier nations who know that this is redistribution exercise of wealth from more prosperous regions to the vast majority of the eu although even they won't have enough cash for the likes of Albania , Ukraine and turkey

 

[cibaman]

At one point I did start to think that in the long term benefits of leaving might outweigh the short term costs. But I'm increasingly taking the view that the short term impact could be horrendous. Not so much the trading impact, just the effect on day to day government that an out vote would create. The sole focus of the two Tory factions will be to gain control of the negotiations. There will inevitably be a leadership contest which I expect the outers will win leading to the appointment of the more rabid, generally incompetent, right wingers to key cabinet posts. With no effective opposition, the damage could be irrecoverable.

 

[sir baconface]

I know you're trying to be funny, but failing to reach a trade agreement and seeing unemployment rise, prices rise and pay not rising, might not amuse you quite so much.

Maybe but that's a big if. I don't know what the trade balance is with France but would guess we import more than we export to them. Then I think about specific products we import in big quantities, like small Renault and Peugeot hatchbacks, wine and cheese. And I wonder just how vulnerable those would be in a tariff war. They aren't premium products and there are plenty of good substitutes for the cars and plonk.

Of course they will huff and puff. They are one of the most self-interested major nations with some of the most arcane work practices and entitled attitudes. That suits the "bogey man" argument of the inners just nicely. Personally I like to see the whites of people's eyes before folding and it's fair to say the sheep-burning baguette monkeys don't like it up em.

(I quite like them individually, btw, and love their country. As a nation they are cnuts though.)

 

[Chancy Termites]

At one point I did start to think that in the long term benefits of leaving might outweigh the short term costs. But I'm increasingly taking the view that the short term impact could be horrendous. Not so much the trading impact, just the effect on day to day government that an out vote would create. The sole focus of the two Tory factions will be to gain control of the negotiations. There will inevitably be a leadership contest which I expect the outers will win leading to the appointment of the more rabid, generally incompetent, right wingers to key cabinet posts. With no effective opposition, the damage could be irrecoverable.

All existing terms and conditions remain in place for 2 years after we vote for independence. So you have nothing to worry about in the short term.

 

[stonerblue]

If the EU want to make life difficult then I'm sure we'll start exporting more of our goods and services to our other friends around the world - English speaking nations, former Commonwealth states and more. As I said earlier, that's much easier outside the EU because we can negotiate a deal that works for our 2 countries (rather than them vs. 28) and relax legislation that can otherwise hamper trade. Of course, importing and exporting is often reciprocal so if we start selling a lot of financial services into Japan, for example, maybe Japanese cars become more affordable/suitable to UK drivers. With that in mind, the EU are in no position to try and stretch out negotiations as, outside of it, we'll have a whole world of trade open to us that wasn't before.

In short, we're too big a market for the EU to simply ignore or make life difficult for out of spite. Yes, it's the bigger nations that we import more from, but it's also them that pull the strings in the EU. If Estonia dig their heels in when Germany's eager for a deal, Germany can make Estonia's life very difficult.

which bits of regulation that 'otherwise hamper trade' would you relax, and why can't the UK financial service industry sell to Japan anyway??