"Lexit arguments about Greece and Southern Europe are total nonsense. Issues there had nothing really to do with the EU. They had the option of leaving the Euro or fixing their finances in order to stay in"
That is false. They had everything to do with the EU, and particularly the Euro. It is a structural problem. This argument is another variety of morality tale of the same kind that Tories make to poor people - "pull your socks up, it's your own fault this has happened to you". No one denies Greece had issues, but those issues were inevitable and predictable given the structure of the Euro.
The Eurozone is pretty much the opposite of an optimal currency area. Almost everything seen since follows on as a consequence of this one bad decision:
- Germans get to pretend they're not super efficient, by locking themselves in a currency union with Greeks + Italians, so they get a depressed currency and an export boom that ensures their prosperity at the direct expense of southern europe, whilst at the same time lecturing them that they should "just be more German". Except by definition not everyone can run huge trade surpluses at the same time, like the Germans do. Someone has to buy.
- Southern europe gets to borrow at close to German rates, hence a borrowing boom. But being locked into the Euro, they're getting increasingly uncompetitive with super-productive Germany. Why buy a Fiat or a Seat when the cost difference with a Volkswagon is shrinking? Why hire Italian or Spanish workers when Germans are now almost as cheap? The one major advantage they had is gone.
- French and German banks get to lend to southern europe in huge amounts for German risk but at above-German profit.
So then the first major external shock comes along (the financial crisis), and surprise surprise, southern europe struggles massively, and northern europe plays the morality tale whilst ignoring their part in creating the mess. You get political division and financial havoc totally exaggerated by the economic structure of the EU.
Yes, some of southern europe is now doing ok, but they achieved this using vicious internal devaluation. That is, austerity on steroids, forcing a drop in living standards so their economies could become competitive again. The thing is, it was all so unnecessary. In the same way austerity in the UK was totally unnecessary.
If these countries had their own currencies, the currency would take the strain, not the people. That's how it's meant to work.
"Ultimately the EU is about stopping a race to the bottom on wages and working and human rights".
It is also about protecting German commercial interests.