This whole EU rebate argument with the bl**dy french - why precisely do we stay in the EU

[handlemecarefully]

Ha ha! I'm going to get told off now for being francophobic. Guess it was a bit 'norty'

So anyway - I understand that we are the second largest contributor to the EU (after Germany) but get the least in return (in terms of subsidies etc). Since 1994 we have contributed £23,956bn compared to France's £10,537bn, and the lovely Mr Chirac wants to see the scales tip against us even further by arguing that our rebate (the only decent thing Thatcher ever did)ceases. If our rebate ends we will be paying 15x as much as France.

So my question is - why do we stay in Europe. What advantages does it confer to us as a nation? (I'm sure that there must be some - I'm just a bit ignorant on these matters)

hola whymummy you smelly foreigner!

zebraZ,

No I'm not being very calm and reasonable - but put yourself in my shoes. You make a tongue very firmly in cheek off the cuff remark and then you are branded a racist.

I'm quite passionately anti-racist for the record. Any way I am calming down as I write this...and off to find another thread to prevent further explosions!

aaaarrrggghhhhhhh Freckle! Now that would be a totally justified reason to hate me

You can make stats show many different things, depending on what you want out of them, hmc.

Read into them what you will, but you shouldn't deride nations indiscriminately, nor insult other users with profanity.

If you'd like a debate about Europe, start it the right way.

Oh FGS. Bandying around terms like racism in this context really trivialises real racism imo.

The reason we stay in the bloody eu is because we love being able to buy bloody brie and bloody olives and bloody chorizos and bloody quark in Safeway and we love being able to fly to bloody Berlin for £30 and if we were in Schengen we could do it without a bloody passport and our pensioners can go and retire in the bloody sol on the Costa del Bloody and we can all shag bloody Italians.

Like zebra said - with the rebate we're not the biggest contributor (far from it). advantages of being in the EU include - trade links with Europe, freedom of labour movement (i.e. Southern Europeans to do jobs that very few Brits are prepared to do these days, among other things), the EU court of human rights, and the muscle for negotiation with non EU countries.

But the french are being bloody over the CAP.

I have a friend who is married to a Spaniard and her dad always makes him say "thank you" whenever they see a sign that says whatever it is has been paid for by the EU.

I haven't shagged any Italians, what am I missing, then?

ZebraX - thats the bit that caught my eye too , I must endevour to improve my European links if thats whats involved.

Oooooooh and David Ginola also (in France or England, I'm not fussy)

Ooh yes, sorry, meant Ginola, not Italians.

But not Cantona.

I think the French know that this is one way to constantly wind up Tony Blair - let's not forget that France had a whopping big NO vote last week and this is politics at its best - Chirac has managed to take all the press storm off himself by winding little Tony up. Very clever politics, that's all...... this rebate issue has been raised time and time again and will continue to be to deflect attention off whichever state needs little attention at that time.

dont we get teh rebate because we are a teeny tiny country?

I like Cantona

yum yum!!

ribbit ribitt

No, we get it because it's something to do with the structure of our farms and the way it's been set up so that UK farmers don't get as much subsidy as French and German ones because of not meeting criteria - don't know the ins and outs, but we're not a small country, in population terms we're same as France, Italy and bigger than most others.

And the CAP is evil - it totally needs to re-jigged. It was set up in the fifties at a time when production was a priority. Now it's fifty years later, different Europe, different world trade. It totally penalises developing countries.

Ooh ah, Cantona.

Cantona - yes please.
Also Kylies man is a fine specimen of manhood also (think he is french isn't he)

Sorry - I'll stop joking about in this serious thread its just that dh is away and I have a one track mind at the moment

OMG - NOT GERARD DEPARDIEU THOUGH - NO WAY

Ooh that Depardieu - he's got big paws hasn't he, snuffling aroud in the wood (just trying to remember that French and Saunders thing about him).

Here's a link about the CAP

CAP

Kylie's man . . . mmmm!

Ditto actor Vincent Perez. Scrummy!

racist? are you serious?

bloody dogs - petist
bloody kids - kidest
bloody rain - weatherist

talk about sensitive - get a bloody grip!
Bloody Europe I say!

but I love for my holidays

Why do we stay in Europe?

I don't bloody want to.

oh FGS since when is it ok to insult a whole nation then say oh it was just a joke, can you not think before you type? Who cares whether it's actual racism or not, it's just thick and insulting

You're quite right,Caligula.
Bandying the accusation of 'racism' about the moment someone expresses irritation with an aspect of another country does indeed trivialise racism.

I'll tell you what racism is......attending an end of semester party at the local university in Van (Eastern Turkey) where I live and being greeted by a row of police in riot gear, in case some of the Kurdish students try to kick off, or dare speaking their own language in a government building.

Spot on with the 'earnest' comment handlemecarefully. You go girl!!!

(Oh,and I have four half French nieces and nephews.....)

Frenchgirl - the Scots do this about the English all the time, but it is tongue in cheek, we don't really mean it (much)