christopherpostill said:
Europe sucks - i'm all for getting out of it. We put more into Europe than we get out of it - whats the logic in that?
I'm glad we are in the EU, however I don't like the waste that goes along with it, or subsidies for this and that.
IMO, I think being in Europe has lots of advantages that we don't yet realise, such as remaining competitive (on the whole), as a country like the UK, France, Germany can only get smaller in 50 years time. We aren't the powerful nations that we once were, so its better to stick together - after all our values are very similar. If not, it would be much harder to have a say in world affairs in truth.
However, I know some people in EU related jobs and it is full of red tape, political correctness and bureaucracy. Excellent pay, excellent benefits etc... fantastic for them, but someone else has to pay for it (who no doubt earns half as much, much less benefits). This also ties in with subsidies for different countries for many things (farming being a hot issue, but plenty others). I'm all for helping people out when they are in need, but industries must be able to remain competitive at the same time - which they aren't in some cases.
Now that Germany has a new chancellor, they are implementing reforms like this country did years back which are now starting to show economic benefits. No doubt France and other countries will head this way soon enough too. Once Europe sheds some of this red tape, then I hope it will be something that benefits all.
