Friday 9 December 2016

My hopes for the EU from the outside

I was one of the 48%, and I offer no apology on what were my beliefs ahead of the June 23 Vote.  I didn't and still don't, consider a British identity and a European identity to be incompatible.

What I posted on social media in the aftermath of the result is though still very much my view nearly six months on.  That was being of course that the result must be respected.

And let's be clear- I am not interested and have not at any stage since June 24 been interested in any Second Referendum!

We should now take the road to leave the EU.  The referendum on June 23 was the highest electoral turnout since 1992.

Of course I want the closest possible relationship with my fellow Europeans, and I don't rule out supporting a re-entry bid into the EU in say a generation's time.

I do though want the EU to reflect on what has happened this year.  I would like the EU to consider doing one of two things.

They could go down the painful route of engineering a reversal of the Euro, at least for some countries.  Subsequently, the EU could become a looser Union.

Or instead, they could go down the route towards further integration, to allow a Common Fiscal Policy, and ultimately become One Sovereign State.

I believe that the lack of a Common Fiscal Policy, is a firm reason why we hear of all the troubles facing some of the Southern European economies.

After all, the old East Germany (as an ex-Communist State) was once a poorer country economically.  But, do the East Germans (now as part of a re-united Germany) have an economic struggle today which is comparable to the Greeks?

Ex-Tory eurosceptic Michael Portillo has mentioned on the odd occasion how the Euro Zone needs to either split up or become one country.

If the EU goes down the route towards further integration, I will re-iterate my point of identity.  That being, I am proud to be British and European.

Of course, I  consider it unlikely the UK would ever in my lifetime re-join the EU on such a model, unless we really were struggling economically.

Should the EU go down the route of a looser union, then of course it does make a re-entry in my lifetime more realistic.

However, I do want to stress that my viewpoint is not comparable to that of the SNP on a new Scottish Independence Referendum; it is my view that a so-called material change of circumstances should not be a case to revisit the EU Membership subject anytime soon.

My viewpoint is more comparable to those Norwegian politicians who support EU entry, but respect that their citizens voted against EU entry for the second time as recent as 1994, and are probably wary of a third referendum a generation on which they have no guarantee of winning.

Ultimately, whatever the EU does decide, with us Brits out of the way, I hope that the key leaders will be able to take a totally fresh viewpoint about what is right for Europe and EU citizens.

The world has moved on a fair bit since the end of World War II, and that is especially true for Mainland Europe.  Watch this space.  I know I will be.










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