Let's embrace the world: Why I'm voting Leave
After a lifetime of thinking the EU is (increasing flawed but) worth staying in, I now think on the balance of probabilities we'd be better off out. Largely this has come from the much more respectful debate from the leave side than I had expected. Starting with this excellent and very positive article by Michael Gove that is world's apart from the usual negativity of leavers like Farage or even remainers now like our PM: http://blogs.spectator.co.uk/2016/02...backing-leave/
Trade - rest of world
The most significant reason I supported EU membership was for free trade. If the EU is to be a free trade zone which the UK as a nation can trade with the nations of France, Germany etc then that is something I'd unhesitatingly support.
But the EU is increasing twisting itself beyond that on ways that are inimical to both democracy and growth. Far from being a positive area of free trade, it is an increasingly socialist and protectionist bloc that prevents us from making the most trading with the rest of the world. In order to sign a free trade deal with a growing part of the world's economy we need to reach an agreement that suits not just the UK Parliament but the lowest common denominator of 27 other nations including protectionist France etc - as a result we don't have a free trade deal with any major non-European nation. America, China, Brazil, Russia, India, Canada, Australia, Japan, South Korea, New Zealand, Pakistan etc - all nothing.
A free trade zone with our nearest neighbours and turning our backs on the rest of the world may have made sense 50 years ago. It doesn't in the 21st century. Far from worrying about Little England, it is wrong to worry about Little Europe alone. Over 93% of the world's population do not live in the EU and over 90% of the world's economic growth over the next 10-15 years is forecast to take place outside of Europe. Why should we be turning our back on 93% of the world, or 90% of world growth?
Trade - Europe
Of course trading with Europe will remain incredibly important for a long time, even with the rest of the world increasing ever more important. But already even within the confines of the EU and inability to make free trade deals of our own the EU share of our exports is down to 44% and falling. Down from over 55% a decade ago. I suspect within a decade of striking new free trade deals, the EU will be responsible for just a third of our exports.
So it will be important to sign a free trade deal, even while seeking new ones. But it should be readily possible. The reality is that the EU has a free trade deal of some sort with every nation in the continent of Europe even those not in the EFTA except for I believe Russia and Belarus. The UK is the rest of the EU's single largest goods export market. We are a bigger export market than the whole of USA even! With all but three small EU nations running a trade surplus with us. Even if the Hazir's of the EU want to punish the UK for leaving the realitpolitik is that exporters like BMW will not permit Merkel to sacrifice Europe's most important customer.
https://fullfact.org/media/uploads/t...rt_market_.png
Constitutional values
It is becoming increasingly clear we don't want the same thing. I want a free trade zone, I don't want to be a part of a country called Europe. It seems like other nations either are OK with being part of a country called Europe or aren't concerned enough to stop it. So why stay in unhappy rather than leave and sign a trade deal instead?
Migration
I'm a fervent believer in free movement and the benefits of immigration. However one argument I'd never thought of until recently is that EU migration is displacing non-EU migration. There are over 6.5 billion non-EU people and approximately 445 million EU people. But EU migration makes up approximately half of all migration and has grown dramtically since Eastwards expansion and in an attempt to bring the total net migration figure down consecutive governments have tightened the screws tougher and tougher for anyone outside the EU. Now in order to get a "skilled workers visa" a non-EU citizen needs an employer to sponsor them with a salary of at least £35,000 per annum (nearly double what it was a few years ago). That means that while an unskilled Romanian who doesn't speak English can simply arrive with no work, a nurse or teacher from Australia or Canada can't get a visa on a nurse or teacher's salary. That's not fair. Boris Johnson has been someone who has always been pro-immigration and he has made a convincing argument that we should leave in order to treat people equitably, rather than doing the usual ravings against migrants the likes of Farage do.
Incidentally I grew up in Australia, which is partially perhaps why I'm so pro-migration. I did not realise how badly we were pulling up the drawbridge on Australians and the rest of the world at present and I found that shocking, repugnant and offensive.
Furthermore my sister-in-law is a Canadian citizen, a teacher in training (in her final year of placement after completing uni). She has looked into working potentially in the UK and as a British citizen [via my Scottish father-in-law] she could but any of her classmates would be forbidden. A skilled, qualified teacher who speaks English is a more valuable migrant than an unskilled migrant. We should be fair. An "Australian-style points based immigration system" already exists for 93% of people in the world, but because it doesn't for 7% which includes many impoverished nations the requirements are being made tougher and tougher. Treat everyone the same and make it easier again like it used to be.
It will be a shame to lose the right to live, travel, move etc across all of Europe on a British passport, I still love the idea of that. But realistically for holidays there will never be a visa requirement either way (there wasn't in western Europe pre-EEC and isn't when I holiday in Canada).
Summary: Let's embrace the whole world, not a small corner of it.
