the majority of the political elite are in favour of staying in the EU .”
Paul Embrey , regional secretary of the Fire Brigades Union , is in no doubt that trade unionists should “ wake up ” and realise the EU is no friend of workers . He said : “ The anti-worker bias of the EU establishment is illustrated most starkly through its management of the single currency , which has been a disaster for European workers . Control over money supply has been passed from elected governments to unelected bankers . In Greece , the result has been mass unemployment , a collapse in living standards , huge social unrest , and renewed tensions with fellow member states .” And in possibly the biggest gaffe of the referendum campaign so far , Lord Rose , the Chairman of Britain in Europe , admitted to the Treasury Select Committee that wages would actually rise if we leave the EU .
7 . The EU needs us more than we need them
Britain ’ s goods-trade gap with the European Union has widened to record levels , with exports in the last three months falling to their lowest in over six years . Figures from the Office for National Statistics show a deficit of £ 8.1bn in January ( 2016 ) and £ 23bn over a three-month period – both figures are the highest since data began in 1998 . Indeed , it ’ s important to know that for 32 consecutive years Britain has paid more into the EU than it has received back .
According to leading bank Barclays , the EU and not the UK would suffer the worst consequences of Brexit . Their analysis states that a leave vote could boost populist anti-EU movements in other countries on both the left and right , which in turn would open a “ Pandora ’ s box ” that could lead to the “ collapse of the European project ”. In this scenario , the UK would be seen as a safe haven from those risks , attracting investors , boosting the pound and reducing the risk that Scotland would “ leave the relative safety of the UK for an increasingly uncertain EU ”. The chief executive of Lloyds Banking Group , Portuguese-born Antonio Horta-Osorio , also praised the strength and outlook of the British economy and said our business model will “ thrive in any conditions ”, signalling his opinion that Brexit will not negatively impact the UK economy .
And despite our reliance on the EU overwhelmingly declining , the cost of membership is actually increasing . Buried on page 140 of the 2016 Budget , a single line hidden in the midst of dozens of weighty tables shows that “ expenditure transfers to EU institutions ” will total £ 10.5bn in 2015 / 16 rising to £ 11.9bn by 2020 / 21 . Overall , the Office for Budget Responsibility estimates that Britain will pay £ 96.5bn to Brussels over the next five years , equivalent to £ 371m per week – more than enough to plug the NHS funding gap and cover agricultural subsidies and regional grant payments currently received from the EU . Shockingly , these figures don ’ t even account for indirect payments – such as the environmental levies insisted upon by EU legislation which are set to more than double from £ 5.9bn to £ 13.4bn .
27 cross-party reasons to Leave the EU | @ DavidSeadon