On the 23rd of June this year a referendum will be held in the UK and Gibraltar on whether the UK should remain a member of the European Union. The proposed referendum question is:
Should the United Kingdom remain a member of the European Union or leave the European Union?
and for the Welsh:
A ddylai’r Deyrnas Unedig aros yn aelod o’r Undeb Ewropeaidd neu adael yr Undeb Ewropeaidd?
The choices of answer being
Remain a member of the European Union
Leave the European Union
and for the Welsh:
Aros yn aelod o’r Undeb Ewropeaidd
Gadael yr Undeb Ewropeaidd
The BBC's potted guide to Brexit is here
If, as a result of the referendum, the UK leaves the European Union, it would be the first sovereign member state to do so. The decision has implications for both the UK and for the European Union. Though there is much dispute about what the results of withdrawal would be.
Opinion polls suggest that the UK public is fairly evenly split on the issue at the moment. The Prime Minister David Cameron and some other leading Conservatives, the Labour Party, the Liberal Democrats, the SNP, and Plaid Cymru favour remaining in the EU. UKIP and the DUP, several Conservative cabinet members and about half of the Tory MPs, and several Labour MPs support leaving.
The arguments for and against largely centre around issues of sovereignty and economics. The sovereignty questions include arguments on controlling UK borders and immigration, and the principle of free movement ; whether there are too many rules imposed on the UK by the EU; and the idea of closer union if we remain a member. The economic arguments include whether the UK gets value for money for its membership; whether it is good or bad for businesses, and the general economic prosperity in the UK.
What I think would be interesting, is to know more than just whether people here are in favour of leaving or not, but whether they are a UK citizen or from another EU member state or the wider world, and what is the most persuasive issue for them.
Time for my opinion... I am a UK Liberal Democrat voter, I don't have strong nationalist feelings, so for me the economic aspects are the most important. I am definitely in favour of the UK remaining a member of the European Union.
