The winning logo for next year’s celebrations of the 50th anniversary of the Treaty of Rome:
“The winner was named amid reports that the EU is scaling back celebration plans, fearing public ridicule.”
*sigh*
They really do themselves no favours, do they?
And that’s before I even attempt to start explaining the supposed costs of EU membership – which, short version, it is pretty much impossible to do without being able to put a definite figure on the benefits of membership (simple cost-benefit analysis, after all, would mean that if costs of £2000 a head lead to benefits of £3000 a head, we’re doing pretty well). Sadly, it is entirely impossible to put a firm financial figure on the benefits of EU membership, because so many aspects of the claimed benefits are entirely unknowable…
Ho hum. Back to the grindstone…
NM,
I’ll try to find the link, but in his speech to the Open Europe group (whom I would assume that you support, as they advocate membership but reform of the EU?) Hague put the benefits at �20 billion per year.
According to the Civitas report on the issue, 79% of all of our trade is done within Britain. Only 10% of our trade and services have their end destination in EU countries.
DK
That cost assumes that we would have none of those regulations without the EU. I doubt it – I imagine Whitehall would be capable of coming up with quite a few regulations of its own accord even if we weren’t a member.
And anyway, yes, the regulations may cost money, but I wouldn’t be surprised to find a lot of those pesky regulations are actually there protecting silly trivial things like the environment, health and safety, workers rights and so on.
Geoff,
What is definitely damaging is the fact that we are unable to negotiate trade agreements outwith the EU: this is reckoned to cost as much as �100 billion per year.
DK
Hague did say �20 billion- he said “it is widely accepted that the Single Market makes a contribution to the EU�s GDP of 1.8 per cent a year, worth �20 billion annually to Britain and an average increase of wealth in a European household of �3,800.”
Cant remember if this figure is based on Open Europe’s research or official government figures.
If your interested in looking at cost to business, have a look at MiFiD- if you can understand it- this directive will/ has down a great deal of damage to the UK.