Brexit: Why we can’t afford to stay in the EU

In the referendum over three years ago we did not vote for a deal or for no deal.

We voted to leave the EU. Once everyone understands that we are leaving the EU because that is what we voted to do, we can work out any number of deals for our and the EU’s mutual benefit.

In the meantime we must leave the EU.

Our contributions continue to increase and according to the Treasury’s own figures we contributed over £20 billion to the EU last year.

We received some of this back in payments to organisations like the CBI to ensure they continued to be against Brexit but our net contributions after all rebates and incentives to stay in the EU were still over £11 billion!

This sum did not include so called off budget items and no figures were available from the Treasury to indicate the additional amounts transferred to the EU for these obscure activities. Greek politicians have already indicated that there is a significant shortfall of income over planned expenditure in the EU budget for next year.

If the UK’s contributions cease this will be much worse.

The continuing failures in Italian; Greek; Spanish; French and Portuguese economies means the main burden for maintaining the EU falls on Germany and for the moment, the UK.

This situation has already destroyed most of the wealth created in post war Germany.

Retired German workers live on tiny pensions and their accumulated savings earn almost nothing due to zero or negative bank interest rates.

The same thing is happening here.

Despite Sajid Javed’s recent spending increase we need far more investment in health; education; policing and defence if we are to maintain our standard of living.

If we remain in the EU, the failing economies of so many of its members coupled with the extravagances of its bureaucrats and the corruption extant throughout its constituent states makes our continued membership unaffordable.

Do we really want to sacrifice our health services; the dignity of our elderly and our security on the altar of this failed construct?

We must leave on October 31st.

Arthur Kay

Little London,

Heathfield