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Low cost alternatives to EU membership
This is a posting from the multi national "Debate europe" website Posted: Wed Apr 09, 2008 9:17 am I am sure that you will see the truth a little more clearly than the misguided posting which have appeared here in the past.
Post subject: Low cost alternatives to EU membership
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Two of the obvious alternatives for the UK to EU membership are EEA membership and EFTA membership. The EEA Treaty is a separate international treaty from the treaties on European Union so the UK could easily remain an EEA member after leaving the EU. Indeed that would be the default. However EFTA membership would be even lower cost and the UK would not be subject to so many interfering laws from Brussels, so in my opinion this is the better choice.
1. EEA: Members (e.g. Norway, Iceland etc.) accept the obligation and cost of complying with EU regulations related to the single market but not in other areas. EEA countries have the right to be consulted on single market regulation but not to vote. They are not bound by most of the EU’s social & employment legislation, and not at all by the common agriculture, fisheries, foreign, security, justice/home affairs policies, etc. The Swiss government estimated the financial cost of EEA membership to be about 1/7 of EU membership. All EU countries are also members of the EEA so leaving the EU defaults to this.
2. EFTA: This option is used by Switzerland. It is similar to EEA but gives more freedom to reject single market regulations in conformance with the Swiss tradition of direct democracy. The Swiss are not subject to any of the social and employment legislation from the EU. As with EEA members, Switzerland pays a small amount to the EU budget estimated to be 1/9th the cost of EU membership.
The Swiss estimates for the annual cost to Switzerland of alternative relationships with EU in the 2007-2013 period are as follows:
Continue Bilateral Agreements ………. 557 (million Swiss Franc per year)
Join EEA ……………………………… 737
Join EU (net contribution) …………… 3400
Join EU (gross contribution) …………. 4940
The full cost/benefit analysis from the Swiss Federal Departments of Foreign and Economic is available (in French only) at http://www.admin.ch/ch/f/ff/2006/6461.pdf.
Both EEA and EFTA options allow free trade agreements with 3rd-parties that are not possible for EU members. Experience in the most developed European countries shows that when people are given a choice they vote for EEA or EFTA membership and not for the EU.
Naturally either EEA or EFTA alternatives are only of relevance if their associated costs are lower than the costs (mainly tariff barriers) we would face if we were outside the EEA completely. In 2002 the total UK customs duties collected was just £1.9bn. These duties were collected on the volume of our trade (40-45% of the total) with non-EU countries and this revenue was handed direct to Brussels anyway. Outside the EU we would keep this revenue on non-EU trade for ourselves. Since UK trade with EU members is about 55-60% of our total the tariff barriers we could expect (as a non-EU country) to pay on our exports to the EU26 would be little more than the current £1.9bn collected today on our trade with non-EU countries. And if the EU26 were to apply such tariffs on imports from Britain we would more than cover them by equivalent tariffs on the greater volume of trade in the reverse direction. While I support free trade with Europe it is hardly free today when we are obligated to accept the progressive hollowing-out of our democracy in return for it. In 2007 EU politicians crossed the Rubicon by imposing measures rejected in referendums and (in the UK) going back on the manifesto promises they made to get elected. It is time in my opinion to see clearly what the EU is becoming and for Britain to work out better alternative arrangements.
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The dense seriousness of small minds prevails.
Barry, RMN RGN (ret.)
A page of history is worth a pound of logic.
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10/Apr/08, 17:34
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