Time to Leave

I live in a nation which is part of a Union of 28 nations and my nation is the second wealthiest nation in that Union but one with a small land area and a high population. The Union is a closed customs cartel which is moving towards a political Union. There are many things wrong with the Union. It is undemocratic and pursues policies that put the poorer members of the Union into penury but make the wealthiest member wealthier. Some of these policies do not affect me directly because my country has opted not to share the common currency of the Union but they do affect the nations of Southern Europe.

I, in common with many others, have four complaints about the Union. The first is that the Union is not being run democratically; its structures need reform to make them more democratic. My second complaint is that the policy of free movement across the Union special disadvantages for my country because we do not have much land and do not build enough homes for our existing population. My third complaint is that the Union makes too many laws and I do not have a say in those laws. My fourth complaint is that too much of my taxes go to the Union and much of what I pay is wasted without there being democratic accountability.

My government raised these complaints with the Union but the Union shrugged off these complaints and proposed only very modest, almost meaningless reforms as a “compromise”. I am not concerned about the economic forecasts provided by the Great and the Good and those aspiring to be Great and Good to the effect that leaving the Union will create recession, mean the immediate loss of jobs, hardship and all sorts of bad economic events. I have lived too long to believe the truth of any economic forecast by anyone. In any event like most of my parents’ generation I would rather be poor and free than rich and in chains. I shall vote to leave the Union.