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by Jason Moore

I find it quite amazing that a third of the British electorate would consider voting for the United Kingdom Independence Party if a general election was called tomorrow. If this poll is accurate then UKIP has now become the third force of British politics with more political clout than the Liberal Democrats. UKIP appears to have struck a chord with traditional Conservative voters and the poll will make poor reading for Prime Minister David Cameron. UKIP has been clever. They have tapped in to public discontent over Europe and immigration. David Cameron is well aware of the UKIP threat and his referendum on membership of the European Union could be described as a victory for them. But I am concerned that such a large proportion of the British electorate are opposed to European membership. I do believe that Britain´s place is at the heart of Europe because I can´t really see any other alternative. When Britain joined the Common Market it rather placed all its eggs in one basket. Europe was the future. Forty years later and Britain´s biggest trading partners are on continental Europe. Now, if Britain did leave Europe its trade with the continent could be put in danger. The job of the non-eurosceptic parties is to push the case for Europe. Labour has so far remained rather tight lipped on the subject which is not surprising when you take into account the growing anti-Europe tide. Europe is our future but it appears that few in Britain are listening.