The EU Referundum for the UK.

[elanfan1]

Are you not joining Scotland and Ireland looking to devolve and join the EU ?

John

Hey, I didn't even vote for the Welsh Assembly. Just another talking shop and unnecessary layer of gubberment we don't need that costs us millions. I reckon if there was another vote it would get disbanded.

[Spyder fan]

Never say never!



You guys over the pond are next!

[jimj]

Dear EU,
The electorate have mandated that we must leave so, rather than spend years attending meetings, from Monday, we will withdraw our MEPs and no longer pay into the EU budget. We will fund directly the EU grant supported industries; farming, construction, scientific research etc.

We hope that European consumers will continue to enjoy Uk products without penalty just as our consumers can enjoy yours. The Uk is the biggest overseas market for VW, for example, and I`m sure the German car manufacturing workforce would not relish redundancies if tariffs were introduced. French wines, another example, have many new world competitors, and so on. Prosperity in every free trading country is in all our interests.

With world renowned intelligence services we have no intention of reducing co-operation in fighting international crime and terrorism. Of course not.

EU nationals will continue to be welcome to live and work here as are peoples from around the world, but will have to apply, have a job, and a clean criminal record. We will also introduce a system whereby any foreign national found guilty of an offence with custodial penalty, will, instead, get a one way ticket to their home country. No exceptions as, by definition, they will have infringed our human rights.

Also from Monday, we will no longer be bound by EU law. Our exporting manfacturers will continue to meet the regulations that apply in the purchasing country, just as they always have and, incidentally, we have no intention of repealing any labour laws.

That`s it, goodbye and good luck.

P.S. Will our erstwhile MEPs be able to claim unemployment benefit in the countries where they have been ?working??


Vote Jim, ignore Chancer, he lives in France

[rgh0]

its in free parking so you cant really complain about it. This is the place for people to vent their opinions on topics other than Lotus Elan so we should not begrudge them that small freedom of speech.

As for the topic itself I find the hysteria of many on both sides of the topic interesting.... especially the outrage of some European intelligentsia who find it unbelievable that any people could vote to leave their beloved but dysfunctional bureaucracy.

It like oil versus grease in your trunnions but fortunately you can make your own choice on that topic and you don't need to convince the rest of the country as to which is better.

cheers
Rohan
hoping the pound goes lower as it makes parts cheaper

[elanfan1]

There will be a bounce back, what has actually changed overnight in practical terms - nothing.

If you've got anything expensive you need I'd jump in sooner rather than later.

23rd June should be a future bank holiday!

[Chancer]

You get my vote Jim!!!

No (more) moaning from me, its happened now and certainly it will be a topic of conversation to many people.

A very negative reaction from many UK people over here in France, those who are looking into the mirror for the very first time and seeing their cosy existence under threat or their perception of, some very nasty comments but thats what happens when peoples insecurities are out in the open, many saying that they feel ashamed to be British or to be thought of as British, I dont see any shame in a country that respects democracy.

I think they went to bed happy in the knowledge that Mr Farage had said that it was all over, he was beaten, must have been a real shock when they got the news this morning.

[billwill]

I am not against ANY european union, just against this current particular European Union.

Its structure has gone in the wrong direction and it is strongly resistant to change. It has become a gravy train for its officials and the UK would not be able to reform it from within.

So in my opinion the only option was to leave and gradually create the kind of organization the the EU should have been and then (many years from now) invite the various countries of Europe to leave the EU and join our organization.

A wild plan perhaps with just a faint chance of success now we will leave and no chance at all if we had voted to stay in the present EU.

[UAB807F]

Dear EU,

(a great letter - snipped only to reduce column inches)

That`s it, goodbye and good luck.

Best chuckle I've had all day. I'll chip in towards a postage stamp !

Brian

Edit to add - like Bill, I'm all in favour of what used to be known as the common market and old enough to have voted "yes please" back then. But I really didn't envisage something that ended up telling us how many watts our vacuum cleaners could have.

I think this might just come good once the shock has died down. Fear of another EU country having a referendum and collapsing the empire might just shake things up and bring a new treaty - Eurozone in one lot, everyone else in a separate associate crowd with free trade and lower levels of compulsion.

[richardcox_lotus]

I'd just like to say how impressed I am with everyone's reasonable responses on here.

This forum is one of the few places I come to on the net where I feel I can relax and not have to justify any opinion and just enjoy talking about our cars, and the fact that we can all go into this sub forum and happily discuss what is a momentous occasion on a political topic speaks volumes for all the Members.

As we are so brilliant I suggest we form our own political party to take the U.K. Forward.

Our policies should be:

1) No petrol duty.....ever.
2) Introduction into schools of mandatory fibreglass repair classes.
3) immediate repair of all potholes throughout the UK.
4) invitation to the USA to accept HM Queen as their head of state.

On second thoughts, I don't think #3 will be very likely to happen

Regards
Richard

[Spyder fan]

I just got an email from my mate dodgy Dave, I shed a tear or three as I read it. I genuinely voted to stay as I thought that was best for us all, however I now embrace what the majority has decided and would like to go forward in the sure knowledge that our great nation will prevail against all odds.

Dear Alan,

The country has just taken part in a giant democratic exercise, perhaps the biggest in our history. Over 33 million people from England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and Gibraltar, have all had their say. We should be proud of the fact that in these islands, we trust the people with these big decisions. We not only have a parliamentary democracy but on questions about the arrangements for how we are governed, there are times when it is right to ask the people themselves, and that is what we have done. We not only have a parliamentary democracy but on questions about the arrangements for how we are governed, there are times when it is right to ask the people themselves, and that is what we have done.

The British people have voted to leave the European Union and their will must be respected. I want to thank everyone who took part in the campaign on my side of the argument, including all those who put aside party differences to speak in what they believed was the national interest. And let me congratulate all those who took part in the Leave campaign for the spirited and passionate case that they made. The will of the British people is an instruction that must be delivered. It was not a decision that was taken lightly, not least because so many things were said by so many different organisations about the significance of this decision so there can be no doubt about the result. Across the world, people have been watching the choice that Britain has made.

I would reassure those markets and investors that Britain's economy is fundamentally strong and I would also reassure Brits living in European countries and European citizens living here that they will be no immediate changes in your circumstances. There will be no initial change in the way our people can travel, in the way our goods can move or the way our services can be sold. We must now prepare for a negotiation with the European Union. This will need to involve a full engagement of the Scottish, Welsh and Northern Ireland governments to ensure that the interests of all parts of our UK are protected and advanced. But above all, this will require strong, determined and committed leadership.

I am very proud and honoured to have been Prime Minister of this country for six years. I believe we have made great steps, with more people in work than ever before in our history, with reforms to welfare and education, increasing people's life chances, building a bigger and stronger society, keeping our promises to the poorest people in the world and enabling those who love each other to get married whatever their sexuality. But above all restoring Britain's economic strength. And I'm grateful to everyone who has helped to make that happen. I've also always believed that we have to confront big decisions, not duck them. That is why we delivered the first Coalition Government in 70 years, to bring our economy back from the brink. It's why we delivered a fair, legal and decisive referendum in Scotland and it?s why I made the pledge to renegotiate Britain's position in the European Union and hold a referendum on our membership and have carried those things out.

I fought this campaign in the only way I know how, which is to say directly and passionately what I think and feel, head, heart and soul. I held nothing back. I was absolutely clear about my belief that Britain is stronger, safer and better off inside the European Union. And I made clear the referendum was about this and this alone. Not the future of any single politician, including myself. But the British people have made a very clear decision to take a different path. And as such I think the country requires a fresh leadership, to take it in this direction.

I will do everything I can as Prime Minister to steady the ship over the coming weeks and months, but I do not think it would be right for me to try to be the captain that steers our country to its next destination. This is not a decision I have taken lightly. But I do believe it's in the national interest to have a period of stability and then the new leadership required. There is no need for a precise timetable today, but in my view we should aim to have a new Prime Minister in place by the start of the Conservative Party conference in October. Delivering stability will be important and I will continue in post is Prime Minister, with my Cabinet, for the next three months.

The Cabinet will meet on Monday, the governor of the Bank of England is making a statement about the steps that the Bank and Treasury are taking to reassure financial markets. We will also continue taking forward the important legislation that we set before Parliament in the Queen's speech. I have spoken to Her Majesty the Queen this morning and advised of the steps I am taking. Negotiation with the European Union will need to begin under a new Prime Minister and I think it is right that this new Prime Minister takes the decision about when to trigger Article 50 and start the formal and legal process of leaving the EU. I will attend the European Council next week to explain the decision the British people had taken and my own decision. The British people have made a choice. That not only needs to be respected, but those on the losing side of the argument, myself included, should help to make it work.

Britain is a special country. We have so many great advantages. A parliamentary democracy where we resolve issues about our future through peaceful debate. A great trading nation with our science and arts, our engineering and creativity, respected the world over. And while we are not perfect I do believe we can be a model of a multiracial, multi-faith democracy where people can come and make a contribution and rise to the very highest that their talent allows. Although leaving Europe was not the path I recommended, I'm the first to praise our incredible strengths. I said before that Britain can survive outside the European Union and indeed that we could find a way. Now the decision has been made to leave, we need to find the best way. And I will do everything I can to help. I love this country, and I feel honoured to have served it. And I will do everything I can in future to help this great country succeed.

Thank you very much,



David Cameron
Facebook.com/DavidCameronOfficial

[Elanintheforest]

There are many things that don't worry me about the exit, and just one issue that seems to overshadow everything.

I'm not worried about the thousands of man years it will take to unravel the EU laws under which the UK now operates to determine which we will take to enshrine in UK law.

I'm not worried about stopping the economic rebates coming in from the EU that support our farmers, university research and help re-build the most deprived areas in Europe such as the Welsh coalfields.

I'm not worried about the ?350 million per week that the exit campaigners were claiming was going out of the UK, and would go into the NHS instead, that Nigel Farage made clear today was just made up.

I'm not worried about the inevitable Scottish referendum, and their probable exit from the UK, with a few more thousand man years required to re-develop the laws and tax systems, and pull out the UK nuclear subs from Faslane.

I'm not worried about the border issues between Northern Ireland and Ireland, or the potential re-ignition of the troubles with Sinn Fein now trying to re-unite the country.

I'm not worried about sorting out the 1.2 million Brits domiciled in Europe or the 2 million Europeans living in the UK, or the ability in the future for Brits to go and work and live anywhere in Europe.

I'm not really worried that we don't have an effective government currently, with no prime minister no confidence in the leader of the opposition, and potentially the most right wing leadership about to take over since WW2.

I'm not worried that most domestic government work will grind to a halt over the next few years whilst all this lot is sorted out, or the many tens of billions of pounds that will be required to do the work and implement a UK wide port and airport border control system

I'm not at all worried that the exit will make absolutely no difference whatsoever to the migrants in the UK, who do a fantastic job backfilling the skill shortage we have, and supplying labour in areas where the Brits can't be bothered to work.

But I am really concerned about one thing. On the news at lunchtime, I saw Donald Trump, who is over in Scotland today to see how his conversion of the country into a golf course is going. He declared that the UK exit was a good thing, along the lines of what he was campaigning for in the USA.

Now I know that we really are buggered.

Mark

[CBUEB1771]

invitation to the USA to accept HM Queen as their head of state.

HRH is already more respected in the United States than are the majority of our leaders. I don't know what to say to Mark's point about being really buggered except that the election of Mr. Trump is not very likely. On a more serious note most of us expected a close vote but with the result to remain in the EU. We will seek to maintain good and constructive relations with the UK and the EU, the latter both as a union and as the individual members. I am much more worried about the EU without the UK than the UK without the EU. I'll probably make the most of the depressed pound with a sizable order to TTR!

[Spyder fan]

invitation to the USA to accept HM Queen as their head of state.

HRH is already more respected in the United States than are the majority of our leaders. I don't know what to say to Mark's point about being really buggered except that the election of Mr. Trump is not very likely. On a more serious note most of us expected a close vote but with the result to remain in the EU. We will seek to maintain good and constructive relations with the UK and the EU, the latter both as a union and as the individual members. I am much more worried about the EU without the UK than the UK without the EU. I'll probably make the most of the depressed pound with a sizable order to TTR!

The Queen is more properly anacronymed as HM which stands for Her Majesty. HRH is for lower orders of the monarchy and stands for his/her Royal Highness. Upon meeting the Queen one addresses her as "Your Majesty" and thereafter when speaking one calls her M'aam to rhyme with jam. You will need to know these things once she is accepted as your Monarch.

[trw99]

The most considered response to Brexit that I have read today: https://www.chathamhouse.org/expert/com ... it-reality

Tim

[mbell]

The leave decision is made, personally I don't think that the right one. There is no doubt that the EU has some significant issue that need addressing and I can understand and respect people who voted Leave for those valid reasons.

However coming from a very hard done by part of the Northeast I really take offense to Cameron's claim:

Dear Alan,
...
I believe we have made great steps, with more people in work than ever before in our history, with reforms to welfare and education, increasing people's life chances, building a bigger and stronger society, keeping our promises to the poorest people in the world and enabling those who love each other to get married whatever their sexuality. But above all restoring Britain's economic strength.

...David Cameron

The current governments policies has really hit a lot of poorer area's hard, they have destroyed these communities and the public services they need. There is a lot of frustration and anger in these communities around the current state of affairs. It seems the leave campaign did a very good job taking that anger and frustration around these UK government issues redirecting them the EU/Immigration problems (e.g. NHS Bus). Picking up a lot of votes for the Leave campaign in the process. That I find pretty disgusting and possibly worse than Mr Trump.