The legal commitment to be part of NATO is 2% GDP on defence spending. Most countries in NATO spend around that, except America which spends way more. Trump has been very vocal in his view that they should spend more than 2%, just as America does. There's no way the UK can afford a huge increase in defence spending at the moment. The chances of the US pulling out of NATO, but then having a deal with just the UK without that spending rise, are zero (at least while Trump is in power).
NATO is a good thing, even if you think the EU isn't. Especially when Putin seems to be rearming his mafia state.

Personally I'd like to see defence spending at 2.5 - 3 % GDP, but I can't realistically see how we can afford that with the NHS and School budgets being stretched as they are. They (schools in particular) need the money first.

Germany has, for the second year, reduced its deficit (I think something like 250 billion paid back on loans and no new loans) and they are planning to not make any new loans next year.

What gets me about the UK's attitude to the EU and subsidies is that you always hear from, for example, farmers that subsidies are poor or non-existent, the same for R&D etc.

I worked in software devlopment in the food industry in Germany, specifically meat processing. The company got funded for an RFID project in the early 2000s. This was a major research and development project, which netted them good money. Not bad for a small (under 20 employees) business. As I was there, we had EU funding for 2 projects. The money is there for the taking.

In the UK, on the other hand, I worked with farmers and other companies, who if they had not been in the UK, would have been able to get EU funding. In Ireland you can find bits of road with signs that they were funded through the EU.

Flood and other natural disaster recovery? Money from the EU for rebuilding, unless you are in the UK.

Why? Because the local government has to approve the use of that money. And the UK government was greedy. Instead of letting their citizens and companies benefit from subsidies or compensation, the government told us that there was no EU money available, only to cash a big rebate for non-use of available funding, which goes directly into the Exchequer. This is not as much money as the whole UK could have got through funding and compensation, but it makes the central government books look a little better at the end of the year.

Is this EU propaganda? No. This was common knowledge when I left the UK at the turn of the century. I learnt it from the BBC and national UK papers in the late 90s.

if we dont pay the EU any money for membership of their protectionist cartel then we wont have any need of a refund of any kind ...

reminds me of the 30's and Edger j Hoover, reds under the beds. he finished many of a good person.

i believe President Trump is looking for a way out of NATO, if so, the UK will hopefully follow. i do hope that leaves the EU swinging in the wind. pay back is a dish best served cold ...

i dont believe they make an EU doll only EU dummies ...

On the other hand, the government has to find its own money for such subsidies, disaster funds etc. It always seemed strange that flood victims, for example, couldn't take advantage of EU compensation funds, but had to use their private insurance (if they had any), just so the Government could get back part of its membership fee - usually less than the flood victims would have been allowed to claim...

we are giving away (sadly) 13+ billion in so called overseas aid plus HS2 plus trident, money is not the problem where it is spent is.
as stated if we dont pay the EU anything we have no need to get any refunds ...

And who chooses how to spend the money? The UK government. They're the source of the problem, and the idiots have given them more power.

None of which have anything to do with the EU.

no it doesn't, but when we stop paying any money to the EU the UK will improve, things can only get better ...

i will give as much power to the UK Govt. as necessary, i can remove that power at a GE. no such thing can happen with the EU.
but first we have to leave the EU, then and only then can we put our own house in order ...

Hmm. The latest ONS stats say we pay 8.1 Billion Net to the UK:
https://www.ons.gov.uk/economy/governme ... 2017-10-31

Thats about 0.5% of GDP (ish)

Are you suggesting that leaving the EU will not cost AT LEAST 0.5% of GDP? From cutting ties with our largest trading partner & the joint largest economy in the world.?

If not then the figures will clearly leave the UK worse off - so rather than saving money and spending it on defence / education / NHS we will have to cut these departments budgets not increase them.

We are looking at a 40B divorce bill for starters .. that's 5 years of payments.

Really this idea that we will be better off is simply pie in the sky.

The EU is far from perfect but it undoubtedly makes us richer.

Seeing as thouigh the Irish Border and the whole customs thing is in the news, here’s a bit about how it works.


https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics- ... ting-story

Ok, so today it’s Irish Border decsion day. It seems that there is a little upset about this, according to Robert Peston.


https://twitter.com/Peston/status/1014946229481025536

Who here has had to read dense, complex material for their jobs, and come up with a response/thoughts/action plan in a short amount of time? I know I have, you read it, you understand it, you formulate a response. There have been times when, yes, a few hours is what you have because that’s what the client has given you.

As far as I am concerned, this is the fcuking job that MPs are voted for and paid to do. Dealing with complicated stuff in short periods of time. I guess this is getting in the way of drinks at the bar and their second jobs. And it’s a Friday, which is pretty much the weekend.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-44761056

I doubt very much that he felt that he believed in at any time during his tenure. He’s taken two others with him too.

If this were another country, I have no doubt that everyone will be having a bit of a laugh about what an utter mess it was, and aren’t we glad we aren’t them?

This country is an absolute mess, and it’s being made worse by the day.

And I thought the Boris Johnson comment about polishing a turd would be the highlight of the Chequers meeting, and that maybe that might cause a few interesting ripples. Spool forward to midnight last night, and suddenly it looks like a whole load of problems have come home to roost.

People on Twitter expect another General Election soon. May surely can’t go on for much longer like this.