The Germans Are Worried......

[PetitAnglais]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-20974666
of course they are! If the UK bail out they'll have to pay for the whole Omnishambles themselves!

[baza]

if the germans and the yanks reckon we should stay in then we should get out asap.

[FredPuli43]

True enough; every pound we don't contribute after any adjustment will fall, most likely, on to Germany's bill. But surely the Germans have our well-being in mind too?

[jake-the-peg]

And you still think they're going to let us leave the EU and retain favoured trading status?

You really think that?

[emmie]

I think they are more than worried, however i also don't think we will just pack up and leave, it won't work like that. Suggest that Cameron will try and claw back some of the powers ceded to the EU. Whether he gets any concessions remains to be seen. All the doomsayers who think we would sink without trace on leaving, in my humble opinion, are wrong.

[Sqad]

I agree with JTP...we ARE in Europe geographically and economically and there is NOT going to be a referendum......in my opinion.

[Gromit]

Welcome back R1Geezer

Why is it that all the right whingers think Scotland would be worse off if they left the United Kingdom but Britain wouldn't be worse off if we left the EU? Surely influence, power and might come from belonging to a bigger entity?

Cameron has no intention of giving you a referendum on Europe let alone leaving the EU. He is just stringing you along so you do not take your vote to UKiP. He has form on that, at the last election he promised a referendum on the Lisbon Treaty if it had not already been ratified, knowing full well it would be ratified.

It is interesting how these warnings are presented by the Telegraph and Mail. Interfereing Germans and Americans. Could it be possible that they concerned we might be contemplating something stupid, and are offering friendly advice to the contrary?

[TWR]

I think the UK should govern their own Law & not be dictated by Strasbourg.

[PetitAnglais]

"favoured trading status" so we pay 12bn a year for this do we? - Outside? not favoured, perhaps but I'd imagine they'd be keen to keep UK as a customer. Throwing some sort of hissy fit because we are not in the club anymore will help no one. We must be France/Germany's best customer, I think they'd be keen not to risk our trade war reprisals if it came. I'm pretty sure that an independent UK could still cooperate and maintain good relations with the EU.

Well Gromit, I do favour Scottish independence so not sure where that comes from. I'm afraid someone is going to have to explain the R1Geezer reference, I only joined last week so I may not be up to speed on some of the terminology used here.

[Gromit]

PetitAnglais

// someone is going to have to explain the R1Geezer reference //

Maybe ZedBloke will. Wait, he was suspended a few hours before you 'joined'.

[jake-the-peg]

// I'm pretty sure that an independent UK could still cooperate and maintain good relations with the EU. //

Dear Strasboug

We'd very much like to leave the EU and stop paying in but still import and export without trade restrictions or paying import/export duties

Thanks - knew you'd be good with that

Love

David Cameron

----------------

Can you give me one reason why any of the other European nations would say OK to that?

One?

[PetitAnglais]

They might say ok to:

Dear Stasbourg,
We are leaving the EU, I hope we can still remain friends, please feel free to negotiate trade agreements going forward. I'm sure you are aware that free trade is a 2 way thing and also there is a big wide world outside of this local.

We look forward to mutually beneficial existence

It's been fun,

Yours sincerely
UK

[Gromit]

Dear UK,

Sorry to hear you have left the EU, we will miss you. On the up side, thanks for all the jobs you have exported to us due to multinational firms abandoning your country now you do not have unfettered access to the European market.

Adios

EU.

[PetitAnglais]

why is not wanting to be subjugated by a foreign power considered a "right wing" attribute? I think there is a degree of skepticism in Labour circles too.

[youngmafbog]

We import more than we export to the EU. Why on earth would they not want to continue that (apart from petty Eu strop - which I guess is quite possible)

[FredPuli43]

Doesn't Germany pay as much or more than we do to the EU? Why doesn't Germany want to leave or renegotiate? It is the world's biggest exporter, much of the exports being within the EU. Is that the reason?

[Gromit]

Dear UK,

Just a catchup to see how you are now that you have left the EU. Being outside the single market is tough I bet. Not only are your goods more expensive to us Europeans and therefore we are not buying as much as we used to, but your imports are also more expensive. A bit of a double whammy that.

Good luck for the future,

EU.

[slaney]

I was quite surprised by this - in particular by how much more Germany France and Italy pay than the UK..

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Budget_of_the_European_Union#cite_note-DB_Research-8

The four largest net contributors in absolute terms are Germany, France, Italy, UK
The four largest net contributors in per capita terms are Denmark, Finland, Germany, Italy.
The four largest net contributors as a proportion of GDP are Denmark, Italy, Germany, Finland.

[Iluvspikey]

seems as though there a a couple of other countries worried about us leaving the EU besides the Germans, Norway has said (If we leave they will probably never go in) and America sees us as a voice in Europe for them. That' s us - seeming to be living the altruistic life

[youngmafbog]

Gromit, you really think the EU would not want some sort of trading pact with us? And in case you have forgotten, widespread leftyism in the EU has left many of the countries broke. The EU market is dying anyway.

We should nurture markets outside the EU such as the growing APAC markets. Along with this further deals with our commonwealth partners who are strategically placed around the world (including in the APAC region)