We are being nagged at and pushed from all sides to drop the Pound and go Euro. But exactly why; who is it really benefitting and what are the long-term consequences of sacrificing UK financial controls to Europe?
I'm not a politician and therefore this short article is very much a personal viewpoint. It seems to me that joining the Euro is of great interest to big businesses and traders, but still a source of puzzlement for the ordinary person. Why should we change our currency yet again, having done it only 30 years previously?(Decimalisation).
Ask the average British person what they think the advantages of the Euro are, and they almost always come back with the same answer..."ooh, it means we can get our holiday money without all the exchange fuss". This kind of short sightedness and selfishness is exactly what politicians are hoping for. "Look guys, join the euro and have no more hassles with foreign exchange! Your lives will be made easier on holiday! No more calculations in the head!" People being what they are, if they think the euro is going to take hassle out of their lives, they'll fall for it hook, line and sinker, without thinking it through. If we are honest about it, the only interest that British people have in Europe is holidays. What other reasons do we go there for? Apart from a minority who have jobs connected with Europe, the rest of us just view it as a leisure area.
Unfortunately, what many people forget is that by joining the euro, we place ourselves in the hands of various unelected authorities. Once under European control, the gates will open to allow other changes to come into our country, which we may not want but could be quite unable to fight off. New and higher taxation has long been a grinning demon on the sidelines, just waiting to pounce. Most of us should be aware by now of the recent story about possible 20% taxation threat on UK savings; one cannot help wondering what else is hidden in the little black bag of euro-goodies.
It is imperative that we take steps to protect all the assets we have worked hard for, whether it is money or property. It's a known fact that young people are making far less effort to build savings and plan for their autumn years; that's probably why they are so keen on going euro, it looks fashionable and opens up the spending-spree doorways to Europe. Going euro might look all sunshine to the young and inexperienced, but I'm afraid us older ones are in general a lot more suspicious.
We haven't had a referendum yet; but if we do, everyone should think very carefully before they vote. It's easy to be selfish and just vote for what suits your own pocket. It's also easy to be lulled into a false sense of security by politicians, about how much better off we will all be by taking up the Euro. Just exactly who will be better off? Most likely the big businesses and those who already have sizeable fortunes. If this were not so, they wouldn't be pushing the deal so hard. There's always, but always, a downside for the average man-in-the-street. There are much more long-term, and hidden, issues to be considered. Personally, I see the idea of a united Europe (in terms of currency and taxation) as an impossibility.
Thank you to Christine for her contribution
Christine has chosen to further her long-standing interests in amateur art and associated groups. Starting out over 25 years ago as a complete painting
novice, she sees the Internet as an ideal way for any artist to have a permanent
display of their works and perhaps attract extra income. She is also happy to give basic webpage building advice.
Examples of her own work can be seen at
www.cottagegallery.freeservers.com/index.htm |
[Please note that with all items on the Soapbox the views expressed are those of the writer and not necessarily of Homeworking.com]
