Question for fellow British people: Do you think the EU should be a TRADE BLOCK only?

Question

What about free trade with the US (without free movement of labour), would that work out?

Answer 1

yes

we need to get rid of their stupid directives and rules that allow us to lose our identity under the influx of immigrants from europe and beyond

Answer 2

No. It should be part of the British Empire. Over the last thousand years we've beaten or saved most of them.  

Answer 3

The EU is an international organisation which mixes intergovernmentalism with supranationalism, in order to promote free trade and resolve issues.

The Member States are its creators, and its survival depends on their willingness to abide by the founding treaties.  In this sense, it is an intergovernmental trading bloc.

In the sense that the European Commission acts on its own initiative with no interest but that of the whole of the EU (and not specific Members), it is supranational.

However - and this is important - *nothing* can be done without the consent of the Member States.  This is patently proven by France's actions in the 1970s, Thatcher in the 1980s, and the failed referenda of the 1992 Maastricht Treaty and the 2001 Nice Treaty.

Moreover, the EU enhances the power of the Member States - it is a tool for preserving the nation in the face of increasing globalization.

Do any of you truly believe that an individual European state of Britain's standing has any real influence on its own outside of the EU?  Consider Canada's membership of NAFTA - the free trade bloc with the US - the Americans ride roughshod over all agreements and ramp up protectionist policies against foreign trade anyway.  The Canadians are seriously considering withdrawal.  The UK would suffer the same ignonimity.

I repeat, the EU is the tool of the States to *preserve* their sovereignty collectively - which short-sighted nationalists cannot grasp with their pathetic brains.

Answer 4

No.  I do think that it has too many powers at present now though.

There is no doubt in my mind that the EU should work together, but political union is not wanted by most Europeans.  We should cherish the fact that we are different, and still be proud of our different heritages.

At present, the EU seems to want to trample over regional differences, making stupid rules rather than addressing the issues which we the people of the UK and those on mainland Europe want addressed.

At present, it is too corrupt, too large, and too out of touch for the needs of all us Europeans.

Answer 5

Bit late, don't you think.