To leave or not to leave. The question which\nhas encompassed society and British politics since Britain voted to leave the\nEuropean Union in 2016, yet did we make the right decision? The main aims of\nthe EU are clear and straightforward: to promote peace with respect for human\nrights, freedom and democracy, to establish a single European market, promote\neconomic, social and territorial cohesion, establish a monetary union, and\ncombat discrimination while promoting equality. So why would we want to give all\nof that up? Firstly, the sovereignty of the UK has been challenged by the\nEuropean Commission, the executive-bureaucratic arm of the EU. It proposes\nlegislation and ensures that the rules are respected, and is further\nresponsible for policy implementation. The European Court of Justice further\ncompromises the supreme authority of Parliament as it enforces\/upholds the\nrules set by the EU. For example, if UK law conflicts with that of the European\nUnion, theirs takes precedence. An example of this is the Factortame Case,\nwhere a judicial review was presented by a Spanish fishery company, who claimed\nthat there was a breach in EU law by the British government, by requiring that\na ship must have a majority of British owners for it to be registered in the\nUK. The ruling went against the government, and highlights a group of unelected\nofficials, making decisions, usually reserved for Parliament, which leads to a\ndemocratic deficit. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Moreover, as the UK is a member of the Single\nEuropean market, it allows for free movement of people from any member state.\nThis is a reduction of the UK\u2019s sovereignty as they should have the authority\nof the control of borders, deciding who enters. This policy has seen\nunsustainable levels of immigration into the UK, especially after eastern\nEuropean countries joined the treaty, such as Romania in 2007, and the growth\nof refugees after conflicts in the Middle East. In 2014, 268,000 citizens of\nmember states moved to the UK, while 98,000 emigrated from Britain. In\naddition, the UK is a net contributor to the EU budget, meaning it pays more\nthan it receives back. In 2015, the UK paid around \u00a318 billion into the budget,\nand got a rebate of \u00a35 billion, and received back \u00a34.4 billion in public sector\nincome. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
However, the EU has been enormously beneficial\nwith promoting peace, providing an area of freedom and security, as well as\neconomic cohesion. The Single market has allowed for the free movement of\nservices, goods and capital, meaning that there are no import taxes on anything\ncoming to and from an EU member state. This policy has meant a considerable\nnumber of skilled workers such as medical staff have been able to work in the\nUK. This has been hugely beneficial as the number of doctors from Britain has\nbeen increasingly decreasing annually. It has created more than 2.5 million\njobs across the union and has increased GDP by 15%, which would have been\nimpossible had we not entered the treaty. It is estimated that by 2030, the EU\nwould have created 800,000 jobs in the UK, and, according to the Confederation\nof British Industry, when we leave, almost 1,000,000 jobs will be lost. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Furthermore, its promotion of peace has proved\nsuccessful as there has not been a single major conflict across the EU since\nits creation in 1973. The level of sovereignty that has been reduced has been\nvastly exaggerated by those who wish to leave. For example, the European Union\nintroduced the Economic and monetary union under the 1991 Maastricht Treaty,\nwhich created a single currency for member states, yet this was not compulsory,\nand Britain decided to opt out of the Eurozone. The UK also opted out of the\nSchengen Agreement, allowing the country the ability to check if those entering\nare entitled to.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Therefore, due to the immense economic\nbenefits provided by being a member of the European Union, and the success it\nhas had in creating greater human rights for all people, especially workers,\nthe UK made the wrong decision in voting to leave. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"