Should the UK ditch the pound and adopt the Euro ? Poll Discussion

taxiphil

Just to add to this interesting debate... can I explode a common misconception which some people perceive to be an advantage of Britain joining the Euro.

People think we'd no longer be fleeced by the banks when withdrawing currency abroad. This is not the case. If Britain had the Euro we'd still be charged the same fee to withdraw from an ATM in Europe (excluding Nationwide customers of course - but I suspect that even Nationwide would re-introduce their fee since they're no longer recouping their operational costs by giving you a poor exchange rate, as there isn't an exchange rate any more).

The bank levies the charge because you're in another country, regardless of whether your account uses the same currency as the one you're withdrawing. For example, when the Irish go on holiday to Spain they still have to pay the same bank fee to withdraw Euros as we do. The fact that Ireland's in the Euro makes no difference.

Of course we'd have the very minor benefit of being able to withdraw a large wad of Euros fee-free before leaving the UK, but I suspect this isn't very appealing to most travellers.

everythingblogcast

Just to point out taxiphil all of the United Kingdom will be affected not just Britian aka Scotland, Wales and England. There is Northern Ireland, which we pay tax as well into this goverment. Why are the English so stupid when it comes to this topic. People from Scotland and some of the people of Wales understand the Northern Ireland problems. Take it your schools are run by stupid racesis teachers.

taxiphil

everythingblogcast wrote: »

Just to point out taxiphil all of the United Kingdom will be affected not just Britian aka Scotland, Wales and England. There is Northern Ireland, which we pay tax as well into this goverment. Why are the English so stupid when it comes to this topic. People from Scotland and some of the people of Wales understand the Northern Ireland problems. Take it your schools are run by stupid racesis teachers.

Sorry. I should have said UK and not Britain. No offence intended towards N.Ireland, I assure you, just a poor education as you rightly point out.

Gilla_2

I definitely prefer to keep the £.

It was bad enough going decimal - or am I the only one old enough to remember that?

ScarletBea

taxiphil wrote: »

can I explode a common misconception which some people perceive to be an advantage of Britain joining the Euro.

For example, when the Irish go on holiday to Spain they still have to pay the same bank fee to withdraw Euros as we do. The fact that Ireland's in the Euro makes no difference.

Just to rebute the explosion of the common misconception.
This is not general, not by a long shot.

With my portuguese euro account debit card I take euros out of every machine in every country that has the euro without any bank fees.

Portuguese don't have ATM fees. Every once in a while there's talk of an introduction, but the outrage is so huge that the discussion dies out soon enough...
Portuguese use ATM for everything, not just cash out: from paying bills to buying train or concert tickets, and charging your PAYG mobile, all's done on an ATM. If it had a fee...

nelly_2

You dont see successful countries like Japan and Taiwan and Australia needing to join some weird bloc why do we?

mee_2

shaymenRup wrote: »

What has Europe brought us other than - the failed European exchange rate mechanism.

Common agricultural Policy which put most of our farmers out of business.

Actually, almost all UK farmers would be out of business were it not for the CAP. Subsidies and price controls have protected UK farmers in recent years when world prices for agricultural produce was low, and enabled them to benefit from world prices when they rise.


My point is that for a small country like the UK in a global political and economic arena, the combined weight of the EU far outweighs any disadvantages brought about by the increased bureacricy.

The more integration the EU can achieve, the better in the long run...

Or do we think Texas and California would be better off outside the USA?

droopsnout

Fascinating debate! It should be compulsory reading for all citizens. Sorry - subjects.

gb57

Reasons to stay out:

Prices in Eurozone countries rocketed immediately the Euro was introduced. (Even German & French friends who were pro-Euro said exactly that.)
We lose any ability to control the UK's finances - one size fits all just does not work across so many countries.

Although prices in the Eurozone might still seem cheap to us, remember that people in Italy, Greece, France, etc. in general earn much lower salaries than we do, so things seem cheap to us because of our higher incomes.

Contrary to what others have said, you still have to pay bank charges between countries in the Eurozone. For example - in Germany they will not accept a cheque drawn in Euros on a (Euro) French bank account. Swapping money from a French bank to a German bank still incurs charges of the order that swapping money from a British bank would, despite the Eurozone thing.

We are way too deep into the EU, having lost the ability to make many of our own laws. I am not a xenophobe at all, but I just do not believe that a "United States of Europe" will work. Look at what happened to Yugoslavia - people are proud of their nationality and do not like having their national identity taken away. This new "constitution by another name" is reeling us in even more (Thanks, Tony).

The only people who seem to want the Euro and a United Europe seem to be those in big business, or those who see the desire to retain our own national identity and some sort of control over our own affairs (at least we can vote the blighters out) as being xenophobic. This is a nasty and unjust slur.

We should never go into the Euro, and we should disengage as much as possible from the EU.

Definitely no to the Euro, and definitely no to further integration with the money-wasting, time-wasting, corrupt Brussels gravy-train (it is a gravy-train only for those who work there).

[Deleted User]

I get commission free money abroad anyway thanks to nationwide.

I would like to keep the pound as i wouldnt like to be linked into the prosperity of poorer nations. We must keep britain british and chuck all illegal imigrants out and force the unemployed to work in workhouses.