A Louder International Voice:
By working together in the EU member countries can ensure their concerns are heard, and taken more seriously, on the international stage. When the EU speaks it represents about 400 million people (this will be 500m after enlargement). This is more than the combined population of the United States & Russia. Margaret Thatcher has said: ?On our own, as a nation of 55 million, we would have some voice, but not enough."
Greater Protection for Workers:
The European Working Time Directive is an EU initiative designed to protect workers from exploitation by employers.
The directive lays down regulations on matters such as how many breaks an employee can take, and how many holidays they are entitled to each year. It also aims to limit the average time an employee can be compelled to work to 48 hours a week.
Greater Equality and Social Inclusion:
The EU has done a lot of work to raise the standard of equality for its citizens. Through EU directives citizens are protected from employment discrimination on the basis of gender, sexual orientation, religion or belief, disability and age.
Protection of the Environment:
The Environment knows no border and so the only effective way to tackle environmental pollution is through international co-operation and action. Britain has cleaner water, cleaner air and cleaner beaches because of action at the EU level
Greater Co-operation in Law Enforcement:
EU co-operation is helping to crack down on terrorism, drug trafficking and organised crime.
What are some of the disadvantages of being a part of the EU?
Too Many Rules and Regulations:
There are a great deal of rules and regulation, some of which don't seem sensible. This can make the EU inefficient and excessively bureaucratic.
Unaccountable to its Citizens:
Decisions are taken a long way from the people, making it a poor example of democracy. People who are affected by EU decisions have little chance to make their voices heard.
Concentration of Power:
EU institutions have too much power. They have taken away the right of individual countries to make their own decisions about economic and political matters.
Speed of Integration:
The EU is moving towards more and more integration at a phenomenal rate with not enough thought or debate on the issues. The UK risks being swept by this tide of integration without plotting and following its own course in the interest of its own citizens.
Loss of UK Sovereignty:
Membership of the EU has led the UK to lose its sovereignty. As a result the UK is no longer free to develop its own policies, make its own laws, or control its own economy in response to its own needs.
Much of what is contained in the argument for the EU does not need a stricture ridden bureaucracy to operate successfully. The Cash benefits look good but what is not taken into account is that Europe is NOT the major trading partner it is made out to be and the costs of running the machine is astronomical. Politicians are out of touch and out of time - we need to be free of party politics so that common sense can prevail over dogma.
Re: The advantages
1: "Companies have been forced to lower their prices in the EU" On the contrary. That may have been the original intention of the common market, but the higher labour costs of a 'social europe' have meant that prices are uncompetitive and growth is low. Unless we're talking about farmers who can use their outrageous CAP subsidies to dump cheap food on the thirld world.
2: "Easier and cheaper to do business in other EU countries - more competition" A better description would be to say that everybody will eventually become as uncompetitive as everybody else. The EU has levelled the playing field in favour of those with the highest costs.
3: "Free movement of citizens/students"
I can't think of many countries I can't travel freely to these days. Is this really down to the EU? We accept students from many other non-EU countries and send many thousands of ours to the US for instance.
4: "3.5m more jobs" This figure is picked out of thin air and is supposed to correspond to all employees working for firms which have trading ties with the EU. Do you really think they would be out of work tomorrow and that those firms would cease to exist is we left the EU? Germany and France have over 10% unemployment. That's their highest jobless figure since the 1930's depression.
5: "The UK has been allocated 15.5 billion for 2000-2006"
This is the lowest figure per capita of any European country . During the same period of time (2000-2006) we will have paid IN almost £25Bn. So there is no economic benefit. Britain pays more to be part of the EU than any other country. At the moment Europe wants to stop us getting our £3.3Bn yearly rebate(to compensate us for being penalised so heavily by the French on joining) If that ends up happening then we will be paying £7.5Bn per year into the EU and getting 2.6bn back....nice!
6: "Greater worker protection/ 48hr week"
This was intended to be a way of reducing unemployment by sharing out the work to be done among more people working shorter hours. It has had the opposite effect. In Germany manufacturing jobs have migrated to former soviet countries where labour costs are cheaper. That means 11% unemployment in Germany and 5 million jobless. The situation is no better in France. Their rate of growth is less than half the UK average. What's the point in protecting workers if it means creating unemployed who are welfare dependant victims? Maybe some of those 5m jobless would be happy to work at a car plant for more than 48 hours a week
