EU Referendum Briefing: Weighing The Arguments — To Leave Or Remain?

By: Philip Stephens, associate editor, Financial Times

Prosperity or penury? The economy is at the centre of the debate on Britain’s membership of the European Union. But thus far the referendum campaign has made scant room for sober assessment. Britain is a rich, creative nation. Its economy can grow within or outside the EU. What matters is the balance of advantage for investment, employment and productivity.

The weight of argument is on the side of the Remain camp. The single market, standardised regulations and norms, complex cross-border supply chains, a 40-year-old habit of doing business based on open access to continental markets, and Britain’s role as a European base for global businesses point up the advantages. So too do the dozens of EU trade deals that allow British-based companies favoured terms in third markets. The minis built by BMW in Oxford are sold around the world under arrangements negotiated by Brussels.