Quote:
Originally Posted by Travelstar
I'm curious why you have a problem with us funding 'foreign countries'. Of course there will be remitters and beneficiaries in any transaction. The hope was by helping other countries within the EU would help create an even bigger market and therefore make everyone richer.
It also worth reminding you that the UK's contribution to the EU budget is time compared to all other outlays.
In the fiscal year ending in 2016, total UK public spending was £761.9 billion. The UK made an estimated gross contribution (after the rebate) of £13.6 billion, however the UK received £2.8 billion of public sector receipts from the EU, so the UK's net public sector contribution to the EU was an estimated £10.8 billion.
£10.8bn out of £761.9bn is a tiny traction of our annual expenditure. The return from that £10.8bn outweighs our spending on many other areas.
|
Hope springs eternal, however there is at least one ghost airport in Spain that I can think of off the top of my head.
I have no problem with foreign aid as a concept, however I believe it should be controlled by the British government, not handed over to a bureaucracy in Brussels and then handed on as if it's their largesse. It seems you agree with the notion that foreign aid, where possible, should ultimately be of benefit to the benefactor, for example in the creation of a market for our goods. I agree with that too, and I think the British government is better placed to ensure our foreign aid is spent to that end.
Quibbling over the amount of our contribution is somewhat besides the point, in any case. It was an argument for or against leaving the EU, and that's an argument that was decided over a year ago. There is no point re-running those arguments now. Nevertheless, while £10bn may be only a small proportion of our overall annual expenditure, it is still in absolute terms a very large sum of money and one that I am glad will now be under our control.