TheCrosbies

we are still moving forward with our plans - to be honest, Brits have lived in other countries well before the EU and they will continue to do so. UK may leave the EU but life will go on, leaving the EU will affect most of us but life will go on, No-one knows fully what the fallout will be but for us- we will continue to plan our move, live our lives because - life will go on.

wolfi

@The Crosbies:

Of course, if you like it here like I did almost twenty years ago, when there was no thought about Hungary joining the EU and there were border controls everywhere ...
That didn't keep me from buying a house as soon as it was legal for a foreigner - and I don't think Hungary will turn back the clock.

So it might be a bit more difficult for you - but the UK has passport checks even today, they are not a part of Schengen.

duztee

A bit short sighted me thinks.
The UK has had a growing immigrant population for a lot longer than just the last 50 years, from 1857 (a 159 years) when Punjabi's started serving with the British Army many of them took the opportunity to relocate with their families to the UK, as did many others from India and Pakistan when India was granted independence.

Many more immigrants were actively encouraged to come to the UK from various Commonwealth states directly after the end of WWII because of the serious lack of manpower.

I agree immigration was a part of the referendum issue, but I feel that more people were just tired of the vast expense of running a Euro parliament which only seemed to make stupid and mostly unnecessary laws.

amideislas

You're right. I was only certain of the past 50, so that's why I used that figure. Nobody could dispute it.

Immigration was the dominant theme of the debate, you really can't dispute that.

But look at it this way, you could have removed the "vast expense of running a Euro parliament" from the debate (it isn't actually all that vast at all, a pittance really), and the outcome would have very likely been the same. There was the bus, of course, but that was a total misrepresentation, arguably a flat-out lie, so, I can't count that.

But remove the immigration argument, and I seriously doubt anyone could argue that the outcome would have been the same. It would absolutely, positively been the reverse.

TheCrosbies

Exactly Wolfi, it's happened now and the process of "Brexit" will soon start but a wee saying my mum used to always say "What's for you will not go past you"
If we decide it's definitely the place for us then we will make it happen- regardless

scrubbedexpat0105

€3.52 (£2.95 at today's exchange rate) per year for every man, woman and child in the EU.

Or, if you like, the European Parliament costs a family of four almost exactly as much as a packet of 20 Benson and Hedges and a pint of bitter. Per year.

wolfi

Those "gigantic costs" for the EU bureaucracy were well invested imho - we have seen a lot of standards and rules for common laws and behaviours and one really shouldn't forget the advantage for Schengen (at least on the continent) - once you're in, no more border checks!
Of course, if the UK wants to return to "going it alone" in everything again ...

In a way they never (did want to ...) fit in - just considering little technical details like measurements in pounds and inches, different plugs and a different voltage and even having plus as ground instead of minus with cars.

I still remember the furor of the guys at Opel (where I did some IT work) about the Vauxhall people who would consistenly do everything different from everybody else - unti GM took most of their development facilities away and just let them install steering on the "wrong" side ...

duztee

Sounds reasonable, until you take off all the children who are not paying their £2.95 plus all the adults who for various reasons are not contributing and the cost starts to rise noticeably for those who are footing the bill.

2016Marion

I saw and interesting talkshow on DW TV last night. There are German opinions which would not agree with 'wolfi'. The EU has brought us more disadvantages than advantages. One of those is that it promotes inequality. EU is promoting TTIP! Is this an advantage?Schengen for me is irrelevant. I have to carry my p.port when I travel within Europe. No problem showing it. Had to show it in Austria many times last year before boarding a train to Germany. Military still walks through trains bound for Germany from Salzburg.
Britain will make her way without Brussels.

wolfi

The first bankruptcy because of Brexit?
https://www.theguardian.com/business/2016/jul/15/lowcostholidays-administration-warning-travellers?

Pollypaprika

According to the article the company had been in trouble long before Brexit came along. Oh look, it's raining today...must be due to Brexit :-)

scrubbedexpat0105

I had difficulty finding accurate figures, but from the information I was able to glean from the net it seems that the House of Commons and House of Lords cost the British taxpayer in the region of £500 million per annum.

That's £7.69 per British resident per year, more than double the cost of the European Parliament per EU resident.

wolfi

Shocking news:
Map of Mad Cow Disease Prevalence vs. Brexit Voters : snopes.com

fidobsa

The only non-metric measurements they retain are miles and I would agree that they should change to Km, even if the change is gradual and they initially show distance signs in both. I find it a pain having to deal with the average speed cameras in UK when driving my Hungarian registered car with its speedo only marked in kph.

As for the plugs, the UK has the best electrical safety record of any country in the world and that is partially due to the superior design of the plugs. I have a small collection of vintage radios, tape recorders etc. Some of those were what they called AC/DC sets, they were made before the national grid was created, standardising the supply specification. These sets work perfectly safely in UK but in Hungary I have to mark the plug and socket for live and orientate the plug the right way or the whole chassis can become live.

jetsam1

May has just said that Article 50 will not be implemented for at least a year. So in theory we have three years to get organised.

However looking at the new cabinet I am starting to wonder whether this is the first step to a backtrack partly based on the likelyhood of Johnson, Davies and Leadsom failing spectacularly in their briefs. Leadsom seems to want to bring back fox hunting and the removal of an environment department does suggest the direction they are going in. She has already demonstrated her incompetence.

Johnson's appointment was considered a joke until it was realised that he is actually the new Foreign Secretary. This is either a demonstration that the new UK government does hold the rest of the world in contempt or it is a clever way to neutralise him and then sack him when he makes his inevitable gaff. This is a man who is on the public record as being sacked twice for lying and no-one can trust anything he says. He also insulted the US President in pretty flowery language let us say. It's a joke.

Davies is probably the sanest of them but he thought the UK could negotiate separate treaties with all 27 separate states of the EU. Ummm. No. Not how it works.

So, either Article 50 is being gradually pushed in to the Political Long Grass as in a year or so we shall see how many simply forget about it and parliament feels safe enough to vote it down and the 3 Brexiteers stuff it all up so badly that the only option realistically is to stop and start again. Or, We simply get stuffed as the abilities of the 3 Brexiteers are frankly suspect.

And the idea that Britain is somehow a true democracy is not really accurate. FPTP. The House of Lords (including several Bishops!!!), the revolving door between the Civil Service, Ministers and big business just as a start. The EU Parliament is much more democratic and the appointees on the commission are appointed by national governments. Oh and every major change requires unanimity from all members. Not like the UK at all. Austerity and deindustrialisation in the UK was a policy choice and nothing to do with Europe.

Up until the 2010 election I was a paid up member of the Lib Dems so I am used to feelings of being betrayed and ignored and treated with contempt by those in authority!