handyandy
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| posted on 2/11/10 at 08:30 PM |
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This is an interesting topic as , if you look at the amount of votes on this thread
37 for
8 against
3 abstain
(currently as i type this post)
Given that the voters on this thread is a good mix of cultures/income etc etc & so a fair vote of the nation we live in,
The percentage is 75% for removing from the EU,
This in my opinion is why we are never allowed a referendum.......the goverment already knows how the vote would go, but wouldn,t act upon the
decision voted by the population they are supposed to serve 
cheers
andy
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scootz
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| posted on 2/11/10 at 08:41 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by handyandy
The percentage is 75% for removing from the EU. This in my opinion is why we are never allowed a referendum.......the government already knows how
the vote would go, but wouldn't act upon the decision voted by the population they are supposed to serve
Why do you suppose that is so though?
It's Evolution Baby!
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handyandy
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| posted on 2/11/10 at 09:05 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by scootz
quote:
Originally posted by handyandy
The percentage is 75% for removing from the EU. This in my opinion is why we are never allowed a referendum.......the government already knows how
the vote would go, but wouldn't act upon the decision voted by the population they are supposed to serve
Why do you suppose that is so though?
Without trying to force feed my own political views on others,
IMO its due to that whichever goverment we have in power, they are too scared to "rock the boat" more so in the relationship with the USA,
in which IMO we are just being used as a "fall guy" & follow them like a lost sheep at times.
No matter what manifesto,s political parties have in this country, it often makes me think that what they "allow" us to know of their
intentions is purely "scratching the surface" of how they intend to govern our nation.
Each party always blames the previous goverment etc etc for the mess we find ourselves, and then the previous leaders are no longer held
"accountable".
We,re running around in circles 
cheers
andy
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JoelP
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| posted on 2/11/10 at 09:06 PM |
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media clout; we're all told to dislike the EU so we all do. I have no idea if we should or not, and 10 mins googling just confirms there's
an awful lot more to it than meets the eye. The reality is that politicians probably know more about it than Joe Bloggs, and they seem to mostly
favour it.
You could also argue that the anti EU politicians are just taking that stance to get public support.
Background reading would include a history of europe since the war, a degree in economics, and a passing knowledge of continental farming markets. 
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chrisxr2
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| posted on 2/11/10 at 10:59 PM |
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lets get oot
We should be like norway, not part of the EU, but part of the european economic area. All the benefits none of the costs.
Life moves pretty fast, if you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.
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RK
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| posted on 3/11/10 at 12:25 AM |
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Do you remember a time when a guy called Wheeler, who lives in a very large estate in Chilham, Kent, was kicked out of the Conservative party for
talking like this? Just asking.
Who will you get to do those unsightly jobs like construction labourer etc if you don't have access to the European market? What about those of
you who like to holiday in Spain and France etc? Just things to consider.
Populist ideals are often very dangerous. We have a populist government here in Canada, and I highly recommend against it. The US is about to go that
route too, as Obama is seen as too intelligent for the dimwitted average voter. Better to have dummies like Ray Gun and Bush Jr, where the real power
people are behind the scenes, untouchable. But of course, I'm off topic, sorry.
I know full well I have no business commenting on your country, so don't take what I say too seriously!!
[Edited on 3/11/10 by RK]
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gottabedone
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| posted on 3/11/10 at 06:50 AM |
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...............but the government have as much if not more access to the public via the media than the EU haters do so why don't they tell us
what good Europe is doing.. . . . if it's doing such a good job
Steve
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martyn_16v
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| posted on 3/11/10 at 08:39 AM |
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They do tell you, but the public tend to not believe much of what they say 
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whitestu
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| posted on 3/11/10 at 08:51 AM |
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I was a strong supporter of the EU before the single currency, when it was mainly about free trade [1992, single market act etc].
The single currency was IMHO a case of those who want polirical union pulling a fast one. On the face of it a single currency sounds like an economic
thing, but it is actually political because when combined with removal of market barriers it takes monetary and fiscal control away from national
governments.
Like the current situation where Greece and Germany really need very different policies, but are tied to having the same. The only thing that can prop
it up is transfer payments from the countries with succesful economies to the ones with weak economies - hence lots of money going from us to other
coutries.
This is what hapopens within coutries where successful regions put in more in tax than unsuccessful regions, but as we are part of the same country we
generally don't mind.
Stu
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BenB
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| posted on 3/11/10 at 09:14 AM |
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Yes, likes decide to blame the rest of Europe (in particular those dodgy Eastern European types). Let's pretend they're to blame for the
financial pickle we're in and that it had nothing to do with us.
Oh no, hang on, this isn't 30s Germany. Sorry, please ignore the original statement, I must have been passively absorbing the knee-jerk Daily
Mail xenophobic BS whilst wiping my arse with it.
The truth is we're so ingrained in the EU system that it makes it very difficult to work out a balanced answer to whether membership is positive
or negative to this country. If we just look at the money going to the EU (as the DM would like) then we'ld be ignoring any possible benefits
(which would clearly be ridiculous). I doubt one person on this forum (I certainly don't) has the detailed knowledge required of a complex and
organic system to work out a cost/benefit analysis on membership of the EU. So in my book a referendum is a bad idea- it would be like letting a jury
decide in a criminal case where the only evidence heard is the rantings of a rather rabid prosecution lawyer.
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Jasper
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| posted on 3/11/10 at 11:05 AM |
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quote:
Originally posted by tegwin
Am I right in thinking Switzerland are "part of the EU" without actually being tied to the financial rapage...
I think we need out... we need to focus back home more and get this country back on its feet!
No, they're not.
I have business dealing regualrly with the EU and being part of it definitely helps businesses in the UK and helps our economy generally. We are too
small to be a strong independant country, we need them. Switzerland is a different story, they have huge banking influence and a very high standard of
living - they don't need the EU.
If I had my way we'd have the Euro as well eventually.
I know this is not a popular opinion, but it's just too easy to say that the EU costs us a certain amount and we get nothing in return.
If you're not living life on the edge you're taking up too much room.
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smart51
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| posted on 3/11/10 at 11:19 AM |
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The UK pays a lot of money to the EU but it spends a large amount of it here in the UK. The net contribution is quite small compared to Germany. The
company I work for is almost entirely dependent on EU trade, as are many others. People don't realise what a lonley place the UK would be
outside of the EU. We're only a small player in world affairs these days and its only that we're one of the big economies in the EU that
we hang on to what remains of our political weight on the world stage.
Of cource the EU needs some reform. The Common Agricultural Policy and the wasteful second parliament are the two usual examples. The EU is a mixed
blessing but I think the good outweighs the bad.
Don't believe all you read in the press. They exist to sell you paper, not a balanced opinon. Only bad news sells so that's what they
give you. The EU is only useful to them as a bad news story.
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