Looking forward to the EU referendum?

As manufacturing struggles to work its way out of recession, the last thing we require is another distraction to give investors an excuse to hold on to their money for even longer.

In my opinion, a referendum on the UK’s membership of the European Union will delay any recovery – and despite the politicians talking it up, manufacturing is not recovering as yet.

The latest opinion polls indicate that just over 20 per cent of the population are in favour of leaving the EU – hardly a mandate to spend countless millions of pounds on distributing leaflets through everyone’s doors. Surely there are any number of good uses this money could be put to for the betterment of the country.

We have just been through a period of uncertainty with an election which further delayed any decision making within manufacturing, and another period of debate and counter debate on the merits of the common market will detract from the main task in hand – improving the manufacturing base of the UK.

Ease of access to markets in the European mainland is not the only attraction of the EU.

Investment from countries outside of the community has been attracted to the UK because of our reputation, but mostly because we are in the EU and therefore provide a gateway to all of the other countries in the community.

If we come out of the EU, these investors will leave.

We would be incredibly naive to believe that they are here simply to sell to us. They need a much larger market. Companies like Toyota and Nissan would be left with no incentives for UK manufacture if the barriers to the EU were the same as in their own countries of origin.

I cannot believe that we are contemplating a referendum just to pacify a few Tory colonialists who believe we still have an empire.

How many doctors could we provide for the NHS with the same cash?

This government needs to address the major issues of the manifesto and put internal party politics aside. My fear is that this will not be the case, and we are about to enter a period of time akin to the Major administration. The Conservative party should not get carried away with their victory – many people voted against the other parties, not for the Conservatives. If they do not address this immediately, they will find that this is the final five years of their administration and we as a country will regress once again.

The vast majority of businesses are completely in favour of staying in the EU. The general public also seems to be in favour. Why do we need a referendum to confirm what we already know?

I believe that the referendum promise was a panic measure as a result of the fear that UKIP would encroach on the Tory supporters at the far right of the party. This has not been the case and UKIP have no power in government.

It seems to most of us that the UKIP factor should be now put behind us.

Whipping up emotion about immigration is not doing anyone any good.

The number of immigrants coming here for the benefits system is inconsequential and should not be the reason we use to vote in favour of exiting the EU. Most immigrants come to the UK with jobs ready for them – jobs which we as UK citizens do not seem to want to do. The entire infrastructure of the UK would collapse if they were removed from the country – we rely hugely on foreign skills in many different sectors. Exiting the EU would also have a similar effect on these individuals. Would they still be able to stay here and work?

The media and businesses all over the country now have a duty to report and encourage everyone to vote in favour of staying with the European economic community. It would be extreme folly to even contemplate leaving, so, if we must have a referendum, make it quick and let’s get back to what we should be concentrating on – making the UK manufacturing industry the best in the World.

* What do you think? If you would like to put your point of view on the EU referendum contact jo.barnes@gwent-wales.co.uk and we may consider publishing it.