Imagine you’ve been dating someone for quite some time; you’re comfortable – but there are things about this other person you don’t particularly like. Apart from that, life runs rather smoothly for you two.
Time moves on and you reach the point where marriage is on the cards. You love this person, your family and friends love this person, but those few personality traits you’re not fond of are still there.
One day, you get a message online from someone with no picture and only a vague description of who they are and what they look like. They write to say they like you and want to get married. Do you break-up with your long term partner and marry this unknown person on the off-chance your life will be better, or do you work with what you’ve got and try to iron out the few differences you have?
We have been part of the EU since 1975 and for the most part it has been a beneficial and stable relationship for both parties. We have no idea what will happen to us if we go it alone but the predictions are not good. There are things that need to change in this country and we should lobby the support of the government to achieve them – not give it all up on the off chance our lives could be better.
A lot of lies, scaremongering and misinformation has been thrown at us from both sides and we need to filter it all down to get to the truth.
Why do you want to leave the EU?
Immigrants?
Within the EU, we have freedom to travel, live and work – all of us. 1.2 million British expats now live elsewhere in Europe, mostly pensioners who have retired outside of the UK. In turn, we also accept foreign nationals and for the large majority, these people come here to work and fill the gaps of our ageing population. Like many countries, we don’t have enough people of working age. After World War 2 there was a baby boom to repopulate the planet, in the 1960s this settled down and now most families have one of two children and increasingly none at all. This means we now have a large amount of elderly people and not enough younger to help maintain the services that grew when labour was in abundance. We NEED immigrants to come here and fill those gaps. “Immigrants coming over here and taking all of our jobs” is simply not true and the facts, figures and statistics all back this up. Of course you’re going to hear about the 1% who come to the UK with no money begging for handouts and getting free homes. You’re hearing about them because these are the few extreme cases that make headlines – you’re not going to hear about the people who are working 12 hour days in a factory for minimum wage because there is no story there.
If all 7.5 million immigrants were forced to leave the UK, most services would suffer. And what happens if the 1.2 million (mostlypensioners) ex-pats have to return – they won’t be able to work and will need accommodation and welfare. We will be a lot worse off than we are now. Immigration brings in money.
There is also a valid fear that if we do leave the EU, illegal immigration will become a far bigger problem for us due to the fact we will no longer have borders in other countries.Are you a racist?
Of course, most people would never publicly admit to being racist, but we all know they exist. Evolution tells us that all humans started in Africa and therefore we were all once black. Evolution is no longer a theory – it is a fact. Whether you chose to believe in facts is a different matter; perhaps a better education is needed – but the truth is, we are all the same species so racism is one of the most ridiculous things ever to have grown in our society.
Is it because of terrorism?
Splitting from the EU won’t stop terrorism; it could even increase our chances of an attack due to closer borders and less security (slimmed down services due to lack of labour) and co-operation from other nations. Extremists and terrorists account for less than 1% of our population and anger and hatred is only exacerbated by our actions and dismissal of other cultures and races.
Most of the terrorist attacks in the UK have been carried out by British people – remember the IRA?
Is it because the newspapers say you should?
The internet is the biggest library of human knowledge and information ever collated. Everything you could ever want to know is here, right at your fingertips and there is a wealth of information on the EU Referendum. In just one hour, you could have enough information to form your own opinion away from what the tabloids, TV and even what your friends and family tell you.
Here are a few known facts of what will happen if we leave:
Unless we pay a lot more to Europe than we currently contribute, we will lose free trade across the EU. This will mean EVERYTHING we import will go up in price.
Our borders will move from France back to the UK meaning easier access to our shores by illegal immigrants.
All services will suffer after a huge loss of workers being sent back to their home countries; from warehouse and farm workers to the NHS and public transport.
The Tories will change the Human Rights Act.Currently the EU has strict guidelines for equality and quality of life, the Tories want to – and will – change this.
We will lose our standing as a world player. We once owned half the world through conquering, war and exploration/exploitation. In a more enlightened age, we returned those lands back to their rightful owners. This didn’t make us weaker, this made us stronger. Being a part of Europe has connected us with new cultures, new opportunities and a new understanding of who we are as people.We are Great Britain but we are also part of something much greater. Don’t vote through fear or the unknown, vote on what you know to be true. Stop reading headlines and find out for yourself what choice you should make because this is not just your future, it’s for everyone living here now and all those after us.
The EU Referendum is on Thursday 23 June – make sure you know what you’re signing up for.
And don’t take my word for it, all this information I gathered when I was deciding whether to stay or leave. With so many opinions being thrown at you, it’s difficult to know what to do – so form your own.