Several, high-profile UK business leaders have waded into the ongoing political row about Britain’s place in Europe, with the issue showing no signs of leaving the front pages any time soon. An open letter to the Independent, signed by the likes of Richard Branson and executives of Lloyds, Shell and Deloitte, has expressed in no uncertain terms their belief that Britain needs to stay in the European Union. The letter cited the huge economic gains brought by the Union – between £31 billion and £92bn per year in income gains, by their calculation – and even argued for the strengthening of ties to boost the digital, energy and transport sectors.
The key line in the letter, though, was its concluding one: “the benefits of membership overwhelmingly outweigh the costs, and to suggest otherwise is putting politics before economics.” While Branson et al may be correct about this, they themselves are ignoring another key factor in the whole debate over Europe: the question of democracy and sovereignty.
Many people have objections to our place in Europe based upon the perception that we have lost control of our own destiny – concerns heightened by observing the austerity that Germany has imposed upon countries such as Greece, Cyprus and Spain. Britain’s control over its own currency means that it is free from that particular kind of meddling – a trait that many Eurosceptics view as as symptomatic of general style of unelected, undemocratic European rule. Many would be prepared to sacrifice some economic benefits in order to keep sovereign power.
In reality, as in so much of life, both the politicians and business leaders are looking after their own, primary interests. The Tories in particular are no less fixated on the issue than they were during the low points of John Major’s premiership, leaving public concerns over the economy out in the cold. The business leaders, meanwhile, are prioritising the economy – but only (quelle surprise) the areas that make them money, leaving public concerns over democracy out in the cold.
Instead of getting bogged down in their own, myopic interests, both groups should recognise that the debate over Europe requires everyone to listen to everyone else’s opinion, and weigh up all eventualities, before rushing to judgement. Human nature, though, would suggest that this is unlikely to happen any time soon.
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