Q3: Don’t we have to be in the EU as half our
trade is with the EU?
A3: ‘Half our trade’ does not mean ‘half our
economy’- let’s get it in proportion. Most British trade is within Britain –
80% of our economy is British citizens and businesses buying British goods and
services. Some 20% of our economy depends on international trade; and less than
half of that (around 8%) is trade with the EU. Britain is increasingly trading
more with the Rest of the World than with the EU.
Non-EU member
countries such as Norway and Switzerland enjoy very beneficial trading
relationships with the EU thanks to their free trade agreements. On leaving the
EU, Britain would secure a similar, if not better, free trade agreement with
the EU as its biggest customer and a major world economy. Our trading position
will benefit from reduced regulation and taxes, and more appropriate free trade
agreements with other countries.
In addition, the EU
export figures are skewed upwards by the ‘Rotterdam-Antwerp Effect’ and the
‘Netherlands Distortion’.
This is where UK
exports to non-EU countries sent via a transhipment centre such as Rotterdam
are counted as exports to the EU, even though their ultimate destination is not
in the EU. The UK will be able to secure
a very advantageous EEA Lite agreement with the EU. The UK is the EU’s second biggest trading
partner after Germany - bigger even than France
and the EU enjoys a sizeable trading surplus with the UK.
Eurozone 2011 goods
exports in descending order, by country, billions of Euros:
UK 213.4
USA 200.6
China 115.5
Switzerland 109.2
Russia 79.8
Sweden 60.4
Turkey 56.7
Japan 39.4
(Source Table 7.5 – 3
– Geographical Breakdown – ECB Monthly Breakdown – February 2013)
from "Time to Jump" By David Campbell Bannerman MEP
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Time-Jump-Positive-Independent-Agreement/dp/1909698512/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1396289029&sr=8-1&keywords=bretwalda+time+to+jump
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