Broadening our horizons

Firstly, perhaps she should raise her levels, from how leaving the EU would benefit places like Sunderland to how it will benefit the country.

A report was released last month from the International Monetary Fund, one of the world’s most powerful financial institutions. It portrays the EU as an organisation in profound crisis with declining growth, mass unemployment, alarming levels of debt, a banking system in chaos, with billions of euros of bad debt.

In a new book, Joseph Stiglitz, Nobel Prize-winning economist, states that the single currency has had a crushing effect on populations of southern Europe and is so deeply flawed it may have to be abandoned.

The adoption of the euro, instead of bringing prosperity and stability, seriously threatens the whole of the eurozone. Full reports from both sources are available.

As for deriding my ‘world lining up to trade with us’ it may be worth noting recently and significantly Switzerland, Singapore and Hong Kong want to form a banking and financial alliance with London. Also India and China are enthusiastic about trade links with the UK and discussions are currently underway.

Our envoys are busy with the USA, Australia, New Zealand, South Korea and Brazil, who are all wanting to strengthen trade deals with the UK.

It is certainly worth noting that trade with the EU represents only 20% of the UK economy. As we buy more from Europe than we sell to it, Germany’s Chamber of Commerce has warned it would be foolhardy to risk a trade war by imposing tariffs on imported British goods.

One of the points often made is that the EU has a market of 50million customers. However, the Commonwealth has a market of 9.2billion customers, but we are not choosing between the EU and the rest of the world we are just widening our options without the shackles.

There is no doubt with the referendum, British voters gave a mandate to our Government to leave the European Union and the forgoing shows what a strong position our negotiators are now in.

It is time for Britain to act as one and recognise the magnificent worldwide opportunity for our country.

Gordon Tomlinson