The positives and negatives of Britain parting ways with EU

By Sabir Shah
November 17, 2018

Since the June 23, 2016 United Kingdom referendum that was held to gauge support for the country either remaining a member of or leaving the European Union (EU), writers and analysts associated with numerous British media outlets had started discussing the pros and cons of their country parting ways with the European Union.

Advertisement

About 51.9 per cent of British voters (17,410,742) had exercised their right of franchise in favour of leaving the European Unionin this historic June 2016 referendum, which was a non-binding legally speaking. The David Cameron-led British government of that time had promised to implement the result, and it initiated the official EU withdrawal process on March 29, 2017, which had thus put the UK on course to leave the EU by 30 March 30, 2019, after a period of Brexit (British Exit from the European Union) negotiations. Here follows a list of some positives and negatives discussed by many British media houses if their country leaves the European Union next year in March. The pro-Brexit quarters had unanimously expressed concern over the total economic cost of their country’s EU membership, saying it was around 11 per cent of Britain’s annual GDP – which roughly rested at approximately £200billion.

Brexiters said this money would be better spent on new British industries and scientific research. They asserted leaving the EU would result in an immediate cost saving, as the country would no longer contribute to the EU budget. They even cited and quoted facts to add conviction to their arguments: In their opinion, Britain had paid £13.1billion to the EU in 2016 and received £4.5billion worth of spending, so their country’s net contribution to the European Union was £8.5billion!

As far as trade without the European Union is concerned, those in favour of British exit from EU had viewed that Britain could independently pursue international trade deals with China, India and the United States. Some economic experts advocating the British exit had opined that their country could strike an agreement with the EU that was similar to Norway’s – where they would have access to the EU’s single market, but cannot be bound legally by EU agriculture, justice, or home affairs laws. Most Brexiters saw the EU as an over-regulated, bureaucratic burden. Leaving the EU, they said, would allow the UK’s government and financial authorities to design a regulatory framework that is more suited to their national needs. The “Metro.co.uk,” which claims that over 33.7 million unique browsers access it monthly to get an insight into latest news events and the most talked-about trends, had stated: “Immigration is arguably the most charged issue in the referendum debate. One of the EU’s founding principles is the free movement of people (along with the free movement of goods, services and money). Because of this, the UK has no control over immigration from other EU member states. Brexiters often cite health and benefits tourism from other EU citizens – where people visit or migrate to the UK because of what they perceive as a more generous welfare system, or the NHS. The issue of how to regulate welfare for EU migrants was one of the main sticking points in David Cameron’s recent negotiations with EU leaders.”

While most Brexiters have been writing that immigration should be dramatically cut and Britain should regain control of its borders, some of their like-minded colleagues have held that it would not necessarily reduce immigration, but agreed that it should be up to the British Government to set the rules. The “Metro newsletter” had further added: “The EU is one of the world’s largest markets, accounting for 25 per cent of global GDP. It is also our biggest trading partner. Currently, 45 per cent of the UK’s exports are to the EU, while 50 per cent of imports are from the EU. And our membership of the EU makes us a more attractive destination for foreign investment. In 2012, for example, we received around £937billion of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), while 50 per cent of UK FDI is EU-related. The pro-EU camp says this access to the EU market balances out the £200billion cost of membership. Although Brexiters suggest we would still have access to the market if we joined the EEA and the European Free Trade Area, this is far from certain – and would come with its own problems.”

Media writers against Brexit have often maintained that the European Union had introduced many directives which undoubtedly helped British workers and protect their rights including regulated working hours and break times, so that people could be forced to work more than 48 hours a week. They argued that European Union rules also guaranteed protection for workers when companies changed ownership, the regulations ensured at least four weeks of annual leave, four months paid parental leave and extra protections for pregnant workers, and the anti-discrimination laws made sure that people were not discriminated against on the grounds of race, ethnicity, religion or belief, disability, age, or sexual orientation.

Meanwhile, the “Sky News” had its own point of view. This media outlet had stated: “The EU is a single market in which no tariffs are imposed on imports and exports between member states. More than 50 per cent of our exports go to EU countries, and membership of the bloc means we have always had a say over how trading rules are drawn up. Within the EU, Britain also benefited from trade deals between the EU and other world powers. Outside the EU, the UK would lose trade with its neighbours and reduce its negotiating power with the rest of the world.”

However, Brexiters said their country could more than compensate for those disadvantages because it would be free to establish its own trade agreements. “The Economist” had written: “If Britain were to join the Norwegian Club, it would remain bound by virtually all EU regulations, including the working-time directive and almost everything dreamed up in Brussels in future. Meanwhile it would no longer have any influence on what those regulations said. Eurosceptics argue the vast majority of small and medium-sized firms do not trade with the EU but are restricted by a huge regulatory burden imposed from abroad.” Leading Brexit campaigner and seasoned British politician, Boris Johnson, had gone on to propose that his country adapted a Canada-style trade arrangement that would mean access to, but not membership of, the single market.

He was quoted as saying: “I think we can strike a deal as the Canadians have done based on trade and getting rid of tariffs“ and have a ”very, very bright future.” Boris Johnson’s afore-mentioned idea was dismissed by the-then British Premier, David Cameron, who had responded by saying: “It would mean years of painful negotiations and a poorer deal than we have today. It took Canada seven years to get its deal and it needed to be ratified by all EU parliaments including regional governments in areas like Wallonia in Belgium.”

On the issue of Investment, the pro-Europeans have repeatedly argued that the UK’s status as one of the world’s biggest global financial centres would be diminished if it was no longer seen as a gateway to the EU for the likes of US banks. They also said financial firms based in the UK would also lose the rights to “passport “freely across the continent. On the other hand, Brexit campaigners suggested that free from EU rules and regulations, Britain could reinvent itself as a Singapore-style supercharged economy.

Those against Brexit had feared that carmakers could scale back or even end production in the UK if vehicles could no longer be exported tax-free to Europe. But Brexit supporters in British Press have been adamant that a deal to allow continued tariff-free trading would be secured even if the UK left the single market, as Britain had a large trade deficit with the EU and so it was in Europe’s interest to find a compromise. On the issue of sovereignty, few Brexiters disagreed that the EU membership involved giving up some control over domestic affairs.

Advertisement