The 50% issue keeps assuming that Europe will just continue to decline as an export market. It's declining but today's Europe is hardly indicative given the amount of turmoil in the Eurozone over the last few years. It's not going to go away and become less insignificant. I think when using the fact it's been declining that has to be accompanied by the caveat that this is not a normal situation in Europe at the moment.
I also disagree with the suggestion that this concern is scaremongering. It may not come to fruition but it isn't simply without merit and it's going to remain a concern unless there is a credible alternative. We won't suddenly lose 37%-50% of our exports overnight, no, but we are talking about fundamentally altering our relationship with the countries who take those exports and leaving one of the largest trading blocks in the world.
Some of the largest car companies (Ford, Honda, BMW) are also concerned. This is from some of the largest car producers in the UK, whose managing directors have also expressed that concern.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/n...ic-speech.html
Ford:
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"All countries should have their sovereignty, but don't discuss leaving a trading partner where 50pc of your exports go," said Stephen Odell, chief executive of Ford in Europe. "That would be devastating for the UK economy."
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BMW:
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"The UK not only has to be part of Europe. It has to be a fundamentally active part of Europe," said Ian Robertson, global head of sales at BMW and a member of the board of the German company. "To think about the UK being outside of Europe doesn't make sense."
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Honda:
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Britain exported a record number of cars last year, and a senior executive from Honda revealed to The Daily Telegraph last week that leaving the EU would damage the UK economy's emerging position as an export hub for the industry.
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Additionally the City is concerned. I posted a link to The Economists article a while back but as I was quoting the above article I was also directed to this one:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/n...f-EU-exit.html
Now obviously
there are businessmen that are not found of Europe (albeit warmer to the idea of the single market) but there are business leaders who are concerned with the prospect of us leaving the EU - car makers and bankerss for example - so I am not simply scaremongering when discussing these concerns.