EU 'aid' paid for by the UK
JAMES Cole (Letters, February 11) is absolutely correct in his assessment of the UK's relationship with the EU.
However, there are other factors that we should consider.
-
EU supporters often point to the EU flags attached to notices proclaiming funding for regional development which represent the most visible involvement by the EU in our lives.
However, roughly speaking, for every pound that the UK regions get from the EU the UK taxpayer contributed about £2. Or to put it another way, every pound spent on an EU-funded regeneration project actually cost us in Britain £2. Not such a bargain.
Business Cards From Only £10.95 Delivered www.myprint-247.co.uk
View detailsOur heavyweight cards have FREE UV silk coating, FREE next day delivery & VAT included. Choose from 1000's of pre-designed templates or upload your own artwork. Orders dispatched within 24hrs.
Terms: Visit our site for more products: Business Cards, Compliment Slips, Letterheads, Leaflets, Postcards, Posters & much more. All items are free next day delivery. www.myprint-247.co.uk
Contact: 01858 468192
Valid until: Sunday, May 26 2013
All of this feeds rather neatly into the question of regional national separatism; Plaid's leader Leanne Wood might want to contemplate this thorny problem as she ponders on "inevitable" independence of Wales if Scotland were to go its own way.
Her salary is subsidised by the UK taxpayer, or more accurately, the English taxpayer. As a unitary state — the United Kingdom — this is justified, but in an island of independent states it isn't.
Regional nationalists like Wood and Alex Salmond would rather not address the possibility that a future EU, post-crisis, might not choose to pick up the tab because whatever happens they, the politicians, would still get paid. The rest of us will get short shrift when resources are scarce.
Nicholas Kropacek
Glanllyn Road, Glais, Swansea
2 Comments
by Neathboy234
Friday, March 08 2013, 11:51AM
“The UK does very well out of the EU, especially the city of London. In the very unlikely event of us ever leaving the EU, the UK will have several options. We could have a trade agreement with the EU, but this would involve us obeying all the laws but having no input(Same as Norway and Switzerland). We could have a lesser trade agreement but with tariffs against our goods and services.
We also have to remember that with the UK having no say it would be up to the other countries in the union to decide on new laws. No doubt the first new law would be that if a bank wishes to trade with the union then it must be based within the EU, bye bye the city of London and all the wealth that it brings to the UK.”
by Philosoraptor
Thursday, March 07 2013, 11:17AM
“Nicholas, look outside of the box instead of what only the media will want to tell you.
The UK makes many, many, many billions over the contributions from the free trade within the EU alone. In addition, whilst we may pay more into it than others, we have wavered legislation that other nations in the EU were forced to sign up to.
It's because of this legislation that we opted out of that the UK gets the lion share of the enormous non-EU companies European Headquarters and the money that comes with that.”