Real Facts about EU - Part 2

❚ EU share of world wealth fell from 36% GDP in 1980 to under 20% now. 90% economic growth is coming from outside the EU; and the Eurozone is stagnant

❚ The UK is the 2nd largest export market in the world for Germany, Ireland and Poland; 3rd largest for Denmark; 4th largest for France, Belgium and the Netherlands, and 5th largest for Italy, Spain and Sweden

❚ Six out of the EU’s 10 largest trading partners with the EU have no trade agreement with the EU: China, Russia, USA, Japan, India and Brazil. Global tariffs are now very low

❚ The UK has paid over half a trillion pounds – £511 bn – since joining the EU in 1973. UK national debt is £1,560 bn

❚ Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) into UK is mostly due to other factors not EU membership eg English language, UK culture, top universities, City services, infrastructure, and quality of life. Companies such as Vauxhall, Bentley, GM and JCB have said Leaving will not affect their investment

❚ Seven out of 10 US investors and two thirds of Asian investors want ‘looser relationships’ with the EU to save on damaging EU red tape

❚ Only four of 140 EU trade arrangements have any ‘Freedom of Movement’ requirement – Norway, Iceland, Switzerland (now ending) and Lichtenstein (opt out)

❚ EU Single Market is often nothing to do with trade; EU estimates shows costs outweigh benefits by over 2 to 1

❚ Our immigration system in unbalanced; the UK has to turn away non-EU workers such as Indian doctors, Phillipino nurses, American city workers and Chinese students to cope with EU numbers ❚ Under its WTO trade deal, the USA can introduce 522% tarifs on the dumping of Chinese steel. The EU has failed to

❚ British Ministers have to ask EU to spend UK taxpayers’ money on UK investment such as saving the UK steel industry, building power stations such as Hinckley C, helping the Royal Mail, Post Offices and rural Broadband

❚ The UK Treasury/ONS estimate if we Remain, the UK population will rise by another 3 million people. The UK population has risen by 7 million since 1997

❚ The UK has in reality very little influence in the EU, and cannot ‘lead’ it: it only has 3.6% EU Commissioners, 8% Council votes and 9.7% Members of the European Parliament (MEPs). The UK has lost all 40 Council votes since David Cameron became Prime Minister in 2010

❚ The EU is supranational - it can override national sovereignty undemocratically – whilst the UN, NATO and WTO are 'intergovernmental' – needing agreement between nations.