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By Jason Moore

I suspect that there is a distinct possibility that Britain might move even further away from the European Union if it continues to insist on the so-called Tobin tax on financial transactions which will hit the City of London hard. Germany believes that Britain should be more “European” and accept the tax to help save the euro. The British government thinks otherwise.

Prime Minister David Cameron has made his views crystal clear; he will not support the Tobin tax and Vince Cable, the Business Secretary of the pro-European Liberal Democrats echoed his sentiments. earlier this week. Germany is playing with fire; there is widespread opposition to the European Union in Britain and the fact that 100 MPs have called for a referendum on EU membership clearly shows the deep rooted resentment. British tax-payers are not willing to pay for further European Union bailouts, apart from the recession it appears to be one of their biggest concerns. Britain has always had a rather uneasy relationship with Europe and now the stakes are even higher. Almost a fifth of Britain´s GDP comes from financial services and the British government is not going to allow anything to hamper this industry in any way. Perhaps, it is not the best time for a confrontation between neighbours and friends but I think that the European Union must take into account that many people in Britain are actively opposed to the Union and all that its stands for. These are dangerous times.