06-27-2016, 02:31 AM
This was from before the vote, but still very much worth considering:
Britain initially stood aloof from the project but then spent a decade trying to join, as its poor economic performance became clear; between 1946 and 1965, British GDP per capita grew at half the rate of other industrialised countries. Since joining the EU, Britain’s relative economic performance has improved; GDP per capita has grown faster than France, Germany and Italy since 1973. Is this all down to the EU? Probably not. But it is hard to argue, as some do, that the EU has damaged British growth.
EU referendum: The arguments for voting Remain | The Economist
What about the Leave campaign’s arguments? The first is that Britain is overregulated because of EU membership. But that isn’t what international comparisons show (see chart). The World Bank’s survey on the ease of doing business ranks Britain sixth, one spot above the US. Nor is it clear what regulations the Leave campaigners want to scrap; a Daily Express list of the eight worst EU rules includes one on the prevention of cruelty to animals in transport and another on the elimination of excessive packaging, things most Britons would like to see controlled. When the Leave campaign talks of scrapping rules, they may well mean regulations that protect workers; something they don’t mention for fear of alienating their working-class support.
EU referendum: The arguments for voting Remain | The Economist