to agree with the positive Brexit plan below?!

[MenMust]

Having watched a documentary recently about the making of the London Olympics 2012 Opening Ceremony, I was reminded of the sheer skill, innovation and creativity possessed by this nation. This left no doubt in my mind that the UK is completely capable of making a huge success outside the EU.
The first thing the people of the UK need to do is to focus on positive outcomes and opportunities created by the historic decision to leave the EU. Everyone, including those who voted to remain, need to put aside all negativity and differences and anger. Whether you voted to exit or not, it is now going to happen and so all thoughts of doom and disaster are wasted energy and need to be put aside. Pessimism is a self-fulfilling prophesy and if you concentrate on what you think are the negative consequences of Brexit, you will drag the UK down.
Of course there is a risk to exiting the EU. However, there was always a risk to staying in the EU as it is a changing entity. A vote to remain was not a vote for the status quo. The UK will face challenges as it has always done and there will be those who lose out because of Brexit but there will also be those who gain. The EU however also faces an uncertain future. The Euro is in trouble and requires fiscal and budgetary union for any chance of survival. The EU’s economic performance has been poor and its share of world GDP is set to fall. It has failed to keep up with 21st Century globalisation and emerging markets. Further integration is not popular. The EU needs to change radically if it is to survive.
Now the UK has a new PM, Theresa May in place as well as a new Cabinet, the Government needs to appoint the best advisors and negotiators in the land who can help secure the UK the best deal with the EU. The Government should take its time to work out what the best outcome is for the UK before declaring article 50. The UK is in a good position to secure a favourable deal with the EU. We are the biggest importer within the EU and in fact import more from the EU than the USA. It is in the EU’s interest to work with us rather than against us.
The Government needs to ensure that our fishing industry regains rights of fishing areas that it has lost previously under the EU Common Fisheries Policy. EU laws that have had the effect of closing down fishing businesses and communities need to be reviewed.
It is important to remember that, although we have voted to leave the EU, we are still friends with our European neighbours and will continue to maintain a close relationship with them and support them in whatever way we can.
We should now open up to the rest of the world.
Our Government should secure and enhance friendships and relationships with other countries. They need to look at trading partnerships and free trade agreements (FTAs) with all countries we wish to trade with. Australia has already announced it wishes to look at trade deals with the UK. China and India are set to be the future trading powers so we need to start discussions with them. We could possibly forge a link with NAFTA (North American free trade bloc). We should look at our relationship with the Commonwealth and foster trade and agreements with our Commonwealth partners. The EU is the only trading bloc in the world that requires such stringent conditions on its members and this has stifled competition and productivity over a number of years rather than promoting it. We are the sixth largest economy in the world and so other countries will want to do business with us.
Our Government should ease its focus on achieving a balanced budget by 2020. Reducing our debt is still important but should now be done over a longer period and the Government should spend more money on capital projects to help counteract the slowing of growth. It should also look at reducing the tax burden further.
Our police and legal system should stamp down and eradicate racism and racist attacks on our fellow migrants as this is not acceptable. The UK is still a society that welcomes people of all ethnicities, cultures, religions and countries. Racism was not what Brexit was about.
The Government needs to ensure that all project funding commitments by the EU shall be stuck to until we have left the EU. Also, it should ensure that UK organisations and individuals are not discriminated by the EU leading up to our exit.
Once we leave the EU, the Government should commit to funding existing projects previously funded by the EU for at least another three years until it has a department or system in place to make decisions about continuing or ending project funding.
The amount that the UK paid towards the EU budget should be used for capital investment projects within the UK and also for improving and supporting the NHS. The capital projects to improve our infrastructure such as roads will help boost aggregate demand in the UK and help counteract any negative effects on GDP of leaving the EU. The Government should spend money to improve areas of our country that have been neglected or just need fixing.
UK exports will be cheaper due to the reduced value of Sterling. This is an opportunity to promote and increase what we sell to the rest of the world. We must take advantage of this.
UK imports will be more expensive due to the reduced value of Sterling and possible import tariffs. The Government could provide tax breaks to ease the burden on companies that import.
We should focus on buying British goods and supporting our businesses.
We have many of the greatest universities in the world and the Government should invest more via research grants to help boost our universities success even more.
The City of London has great financial institutions and London is one of the world’s top financial centres. It is renowned for its flexibility, resourcefulness, connections, highly skilled workforce, experience. The City with the support of the Government should ensure that it does everything so that it remains one of, if not the most attractive centre for finance in the world.
Finally, we, the UK need to stop underestimating what our country can achieve. Our history has shown what we can do. We still do and will continue to do. We were the pioneers of the industrial revolution. We invented the train, the telephone, the computer, the internet for example. We discovered penicillin, DNA, the laws of gravity. We have Shakepeare, Isambard Kingdom Brunel, Charles Darwin, Stephen Hawking, The Beatles, Florence Nightingale, just to name a few! Football, rugby, cricket all came from our country. Our reach and influence is global. We are not a great empire anymore and we have no desire to be but our systems of politics, law, finance are duplicated around the world. So let’s not underestimate ourselves. I have great confidence in our younger generation to continue what previous generations have done. They are bright, intelligent, skilled, energetic, creative. They and older generations have the ability to make a success of our exit from the EU. We all just need to believe in ourselves and remain calm and confident.
We have been in the EU for 43 years, not really a long time in the scheme of things.
So let’s not be afraid and let us take this challenge on and show what we can do!

Corcory, fair play to you if that's what you're trying to say, but you certainly do not speak for all the vocal leavers on these boards from what I've seen.

Menmust, I'm genuinely interested to hear how being in the EU affected your life.

Yes me too, winky. This is one of the big mysteries.

Me too - can we have an example of one specific way in which britain's membership of the EU directly impacted on your life OP?

Impacts, affects - we are still in the EU. Whatever oppression the op is suffering hasn't stopped.

How will leaving the EU affect your lives?
Your angst fuelled posts suggest you fear serious harm.

What awful things await you personally once we leave the EU?
I'm assuming you've made a list?

I think we've been over the costs of leaving.

What costs did it bring that it effected your life so much?

Answers on a postcard..

So smallfox. You personally are paying for us to leave the EU?

Yes I do fear serious harm. All the indications are that we will be much poorer economically, socially and culturally. And that's before you get on to the danger to peace in NI, and the risk of breaking up the UK.

So, your turn. How is the EU negatively impacting on your life?

Poorer socially?

How's that?

& culturally poorer?

In what way?

Poorer socially? We've already had a big increase in racist attacks, and the country appears more divided that I have ever seen it, with entrenched positions and very little room for dialogue. If that's not enough there is the fact that, whether we end up restricting freedom of movement or not, many EU nationals are likely to relocate or choose not to come here, either for economic reasons or because this no longer looks like a tolerant or safe place for foreigners. It makes us a smaller, more inward-looking society.

Culturally because of limitations on our ability to work freely with EU colleagues in scientific research, artistic collaborations etc

So how are you suffering under the EU?

Everyone in the country got poorer on the night of the referendum surf, you know when the pound devalued.

How has the EU badly effected you?

surferjet Yes I have indeed already experienced serious harm as the result of the Brexit vote.

As several posters have highlighted on here our children voted remain and feel betrayed by the vote. Many now see their futures being overseas. One of mine is a scientist and the opportunities to progress her career have already disappeared as a result of uncertainty and prejudice resulting directly from Brexit, there are now over 400 detailed incidents, with evidence, reported to Jo Johnson, in response to his request. She now considers she will have to go overseas to further her career. This is against the backdrop that in my family the older members of her generation have already gone overseas because government policy, especially on the NHS, had made them feel that they would be more valued and could do their jobs better overseas. Basically you are waving your Union Jacks to a generation who will where they have the skills and opportunity are planning their own leave vote, with their feet.

Menmust moans that they have been patronised etc. but they have not bothered to offer the respect to other posters of responding on the issue of this certain brain drain and it's impact on their plan along with many other issues rooted in reality.

Every real plan focuses on threats and competition as well as opportunities. I can absolutely assure both of you that no corporation would issue a wish list and dare call it a plan.....

I'm very directly affected as a migrant myself. My biggest concern is that a hard brexit would prevent me from bringing my mother here if she needs care in her old age. Before anyone scoffs, this is not an idle concern: two of my cousins are in Australia and were unable to bring their mother over to be cared for when she developed dementia.

Oh and the part of my retirement savings that is still in sterling lost >10% overnight on 24th June.

I am affected (as we all are) because I now live in a less tolerant, more right wing country. The long term ramifications that this will have are yet to be seen (but I am scared of what they are), however things that have already happened are awful - massive increase in racial abuse and assault, the murders of Arek Jozwik and Jo Cox. I am uneasy about a deteriorating climate of acceptance of anyone who is "different". Where will this lead? How will this affect my mixed race dc?

I am affected because some of my identity will be stripped away when they take away our EU citizenship.

I am affected because one of our representatives abroad is apparently Nigel Farage.

Because our government is now apparently going to base its Brexit agenda on a supposedly anti immigration mandate THAT IT HAS NOT BEEN GIVEN.

Because we may apparently even lose membership of the single market.

I really want to know where any kind of strong political opposition to them is going to come from.

why on earth would anyone stop fighting for the best outcome at this point?'
That's exactly what leavers are trying to say. It hasn't happened yet we want our best outcome

corcory the major problem is that you and your fellow leavers, certainly those who post on here, have absolutely no idea what the 'best outcome' is.

Remainers can only hope for the least worst option but this was your choice- what is your 'best outcome'?

My biggest concern is that a hard brexit would prevent me from bringing my mother here if she needs care in her old age

I'm not sure that will illicit much support from either camp misti

It is very difficult to justify a case for moving someone from any country to another one only at the point where they can make no contribution and will very likely be a drain on resources.

It's affected me in the same way as it's affected whatwouldron do - my children expect to have to go abroad when their jobs leave. That will affect me socially.

Yes, I do think I need to do something about it. Like others I believe that Tory MPs think their first duty is to put the needs of the Tory party first and only consider the needs of the country as an afterthought. So I keep writing to my MP. I will try to make her do the job she was elected for, which was to represent her constituents. If she finds that too onerous, she can stand down.

My biggest concern is that a hard brexit would prevent me from bringing my mother here if she needs care in her old age

Good grief

Poorer socially? Well if you think of the uk like a giant 'organisation', there are lots of parallels with organisational psychology - at the extremes you have the race attacks etc but these are a tiny minority. As well as splitting the country down the middle, we've damaged the sense of commitment, security and, dare I say it 'engagement', of around half the country - mostly economic contributors or potential contributors.

In particular, the government should be bricking it as to the consequences for our educated young people and their plans for the future. It's not just a case of whether they decide to work outside the uk - it's almost more harmful if they wish they could do this and can't. Everyone is worried about the 'disaffected left behind' but in many ways, that horse has bolted. Someone has to pay the pensions.

Charming display of empathy there, Surferjet.

So can we take it that you can't think of any negative effects of the EU on you personally?