England trying to force the rest of the country out of the EU will be be the coup de grace for their precious Union.

Leaving aside the all-important economic aspect, the whole EU concept is a beautiful thing if you can get a passport from an EU country. But if you can't (and you want to live in Europe), it feels like blatant discrimination on the scale of Apartheid (don't get offended by hyperbole). The whole thing has absurdly inconsistent rules. Britain has really strict laws, while countries like Ireland and Hungary will grant citizenship in very tenuous circumstances. The whole point being that it feels like abject discrimination against people on the grounds, not even of their birth but their grandparent's birth. The idea that the difference between finding it frightfully difficult to stay in a country at all and being allowed to live, work, study (for FREE) and receive benefits from that country depends basically on where your grandparents were born is rather distasteful to me.

as for as citizenship is concerned, every EU country is very different..so a country like Lithuania will not let people have two passport, except for a certain time period in history..I know a guy, who was born in Lithuania , but move to Australia when he was 10 years old (grow up in Australia) he then move back to Lithuanian (now he can have both Lithuania and Australia passport) he had two kids who was born in Lithuanian , but he move the family back to Australian when the kids was 5 and 4 years old, the two kids get Australian citizenship , but they have to give up there Lithuanian citizenship .so you have this crazy situation were the dad has both Australian and Lithuanian passport, but the kids only have Australian, even known they was born in Lithuania to two Lithuanian parents

Latvia, they have 200,000 people (10% of population) , who can't get a Latvian passport, even know they were born and live there whole life in Latvia, because they can't speak Latvian..but if born after 1991, then you can

then you have Malta, which you can buy a passport for about $1 million Euros, Austria you get for about $5 million, and Cyprus gave citizenship to all the rich Russian, when Cyprus banks steal everyone money from there bank accounts in 2009 :)



Edited by adrtho: 26/5/2015 04:38:34 AM

The red-green-pink (pink for the feminist party) just approved a strategy giving returning ISIS fighters support in many ways. For one, through a cooperation with the housing corporations to give them housing. Another, by introducing them to various job offers and getting them jobs

This strategy has been met with criticism by the right, who believe that the left is rewarding ISIS fighters rather than punishing them. "There is no reason to treat IS fighters any different than any other citizens. You don't get jobs and housing simply because you are a criminal", says People's Party Lotta Edholm.

Ewa Larsson, Greens, counter by saying that having a job is a fundamental human right and their concern is the social part rather than the judicial one.

Yeah and in Sweden all you have to do is go fight for Isis and they'll give you an apartment

My lord, jag gillar Svenskar

The delicious (or not so delicious) irony being that, allegedly, the waiting list to get an apartment in Stockholm or Göteborg is like five years or something.

Edited by quickflick: 26/5/2015 05:32:19 AM

Try 20-30 if you don't want to live in a ghetto.

That's encouraging. Do people sublet? Are there sharehouses?

It's about $1000 aud in the burbs (could be 3m x 3m) and you can pay up to double in the city.
I ended up buying a place 7 years ago because I lived with my ex for 7 months just trying to find somewhere to live after we split up.
http://qz.com/264418/why-its-nearly-impossible-to-rent-an-apartment-in-stockholm/

But back to topic. Wish we left Europe.

Edited by scott21: 26/5/2015 07:33:12 AM

$1000 AUD per... ?

for all the Scot, who want Scotland to stay in the EU....do you like that you country is now full of Polish and Lithuanians?, who have free movement in and out of Scotland, but Australians, and Kiwis (none Uk grandparents) don't ?..would you like to see Scottish people be giving free movement in Australia or less restrictions? because Australia government will never give such free movement to UK citizens un less it reciprocal to Australian citizens, and under EU law, UK can not make such agreement with Australia or new Zealand

For what it's worth, I can think of a fairly decent number of Scots, whom I know personally, who would probably trade free movement within the Commonwealth for free movement within the EU. Lots I know would rather have easy access to Australia, Canada or New Zealand, than the right to live in France or Italy. And you could argue that this is evidenced by the number of Scots living in Commonwealth countries.

Yeah we're fine with it because we:
a) aren't a bunch of pathetic racists like the south, the little England phenomena is, as the name suggest, an English trait.

b) could not give a flying fuck about England's stupid commonwealth, thus free movement within it is useless to us. Free movement around Australia/NZ for UK citizens and vice versa is utterly pointless compared to being able to move freely throughout Europe.

c) Enjoy being integrated formally within European society and the benefits come with that. Most recognise that we are just as the rest of the EU can come to Scotland, we are just as free to go live anywhere else in the EU. Immigration is beneficial to our economy, especially due to nearly half of all new immigrants to Scotland holding a degree which helps slow the brain drain south.

UK running into a burning house. The EU is destined to collapse, the UK is better off out of the EU.

c) Enjoy being integrated formally within European society and the benefits come with that. Most recognise that we are just as the rest of the EU can come to Scotland, we are just as free to go live anywhere else in the EU. Immigration is beneficial to our economy, especially due to nearly half of all new immigrants to Scotland holding a degree which helps slow the brain drain south.

Yes, free and uncontrolled movement of peoples from literal third world countries with a dismal minimum wage is beneficial to the UK economy. :lol:

UK doesn't need the EU, the EU needs the UK. Although I don't think they'll leave, I hope Cameron uses this to negotiate far better terms with the EU.

Edited by 433: 26/5/2015 07:53:24 PM

Except there are plenty of areas like Scotland, the North of England and Wales where immigration from these regions is helpful to their local economies as they take unskilled jobs that no local wants to do as they see it as beneath them.

At the other end, companies being able to hire skilled/degree holding immigrants gives them more opportunities to grow and gives them incentive to stay in the region rather than relocate to London despite the lesser amount of local graduates in the area.

Except there are plenty of areas like Scotland, the North of England and Wales where immigration from these regions is helpful to their local economies as they take unskilled jobs that no local wants to do as they see it as beneath them.

At the other end, companies being able to hire skilled/degree holding immigrants gives them more opportunities to grow and gives them incentive to stay in the region rather than relocate to London despite the lesser amount of local graduates in the area.

The (southern) English can whinge about it all they want, the fact is it's only them who have issues with it and trying to force the other three nations out of Europe is going to be the start of the end for the Union.

A couple of things:

Over 50pc of UK trade is with the European Union.

In the event of a British exit, the EU will not want to sign a free trade agreement with the UK. This will basically send a message to others that you can be outside the common market but still enjoy the benefits without any political obligations. That would lead to the whole EU project basically disintegrating.

In reality the UK will lose trade, which it will find very hard to replace.

Secondly, the Freedom of movement thing - nothing stops the UK from enforcing their own industrial policy on the minimum wage. Their government just chooses not to do it, especially the Tories. This drives resentment, racism and nationalism amongst the British working classes.

It's also important to remember that in the 1990s, 13.7 million British lived in poverty. Many had the freedom to go to other countries in continental Europe to make a living, which was doing better economically at that time. Now, when the situation is reversed, people want to pull the plug on continental Europeans doing the same? That seems a bit selfish.

Edited by lastbroadcast: 26/5/2015 10:21:18 PM

or in 2004 , local villages in Scotland,couldn't understand why any body would want to steal all the tennis nets, on till a farmer finds a group of Lithuanians using the tennis nets to catch all the salmon in he river system :lol:

Why do you people flick your neck when referring to alcohol?

The red-green-pink (pink for the feminist party) just approved a strategy giving returning ISIS fighters support in many ways. For one, through a cooperation with the housing corporations to give them housing. Another, by introducing them to various job offers and getting them jobs

This strategy has been met with criticism by the right, who believe that the left is rewarding ISIS fighters rather than punishing them. "There is no reason to treat IS fighters any different than any other citizens. You don't get jobs and housing simply because you are a criminal", says People's Party Lotta Edholm.

Ewa Larsson, Greens, counter by saying that having a job is a fundamental human right and their concern is the social part rather than the judicial one.

Get out please Britain, save yourself from the sinking ship.

UK doesn't need to be in EU.....un like the rest of Europe, which need to be in a EU for many reasons , the UK doesn't

If the Uk had maintains it trading connection with the Commonwealth countries (especially Australia and Canda) the Uk would have a bigger economy today ,of course this is in hindsight..Today , the UK doesn't need to be inside the EU to have free trade agreement with the EU or any other country , as Australia and US would be signing a free trade agreement soon with the EU

David Cameron will use the up coming referendum to try and push the EU to make very needed reforms..

for all the Scot, who want Scotland to stay in the EU....do you like that you country is now full of Polish and Lithuanians?, who have free movement in and out of Scotland, but Australians, and Kiwis (none Uk grandparents) don't ?..would you like to see Scottish people be giving free movement in Australia or less restrictions? because Australia government will never give such free movement to UK citizens un less it reciprocal to Australian citizens, and under EU law, UK can not make such agreement with Australia or new Zealand

Wow, there really is a lot of mis-information being thrown about here, especially when it comes to what laws the EU "can force" on the UK.

Whilst there are some labour standards that come from the EU level, labour market issues like minimum wages etc are set at the national govt level, not the EU.

Also, with all the talk of Lithuanians and poles "flooding the UK job market", you do realise that the unemployment rate in the UK is 5.4%, lower than in Australia, right?

I think all the Litthos and Pols coming to the UK for last 10 years has been good for the UK

there nothing funny them listing to some Pol, talk about the potatoes famine, and saying fuck the English in a really thick Irish accent
Edited by adrtho: 22/2/2016 06:23:29 PM

The royal family is seriously considering making a dramatic intervention in the referendum debate with an announcement that it supports Britain remaining inside the European Union.

That the royals are prepared to risk provoking a potential constitutional crisis shows just how deep their anger is at parts of the British press and senior politicians.

According to a senior source close to official figures, there was particular resentment at the Sun’s newspaper’s depiction of the Queen as a Brexit supporter.

But the anger runs through the generations at Buckingham Palace: there was fury at the claims about “workshy” Prince William, a campaign mounted by two papers with an anti-EU stance, the Daily Mail and the Sun. And there was a feeling last week that rock bottom had been hit with a story in the Mail that Kate was now posher than the other royals.

Using outside experts who advised that the intervention would need to be presented by a figure with impeccable European credentials, a strong affinity with the continent and the character to speak out, the family has decided that the move should fronted by Prince Philip.

“He has been hugely impressed by the way the EU stepped in, not just once but several times, to save Greece,” said one official with knowledge of events. “He admires what Tsipras and Varoufakis achieved – in fact he told friends he sees something of his younger self in the charismatic, motorbike-riding, eye-for-the-ladies Varoufakis. Mind you,” added the source, “he also thinks the Greeks would never have got into this mess if the colonels had still been in power.”

Another well-connected source explained that the royals now see a tightening conspiracy between the pro-exit papers, notably the Sun, Telegraph and Mail, and certain politicians. “The leader of Vote Leave is Michael Gove – that awful little leaker who put it about that the Queen wanted out. They can’t stand him. And as for Boris, the other main outer – he’s a cycling maniac from Islington. All he has done for the royal family is make it difficult to get around London in a decent-sized Daimler. And the third of the trio – Farage – what another awful little man.”

Part of the reason for stepping into the debate in such an unprecedented way is huge disappointment in the prime minister, David Cameron.

“The feeling is that we can’t leave it to him. Look what happened at the last referendum we had, on Scotland. We nearly lost Balmoral and the shoots. Nicola Sturgeon could be sat in that castle now – we know she had her eye on it – it was a damn close-run thing.”

Royal circles found particularly offensive Cameron’s portrayal of the Queen as having “purred down the line” when he telephoned her to tell her Scotland had voted against independence. “The cheek of the man. There was real fury about that comment. And the irony of it – coming from a fat cat,” said a source.

Remaining questions of strategy are being resolved by an inner circle at the palace. On timing, the date picked for Philip to make a nationwide address is 10 June, crucially just two weeks before the referendum on 23 June. Courtiers have noted the added poignancy of 10 June – it is Philip’s 95th birthday.

On which platform to use, the source said: “We want to avoid that ‘bloody little man’, as Charles called BBC royal reporter Nicholas Witchell.”

Kensington Palace sources say the choice is a tight one between ITV’s news anchor Tom Bradby, who is preferred by Prince William, and Prince Harry’s strong favourites Ant and Dec. Harry argues that the Saturday Night Takeaway presenters would reach a different demographic and be particularly appealing to “people in the north with accents”.

“William says that chap at ITV, Bradby, sees things like us. And there is a strong feeling that we should do over the Bleating Broadcasting Corporation. Serve them right for cocking up the Queen’s water pageant with those disc jockeys instead of using a Dimbleby.”

Another insider said early proposals to do a live broadcast have been rejected in favour of a pre-recorded session because of Philip’s propensity for swearing. “The words have to be perfect,” she said, “but we’ve got time to iron things out between today – 1 April – and June.”

http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2016/apr/01/exclusive-royal-family-considering-dramatic-brexit-intervention

How likely is the Brexit?

Interested to hear in what those who spend a lot of time in the UK say.

I would have thought there was Buckley's chance based on what the betting agencies are saying.

That's usually a good gauge. At least in sport, it is. Betting agencies can go by past performances, type of players and have a far better idea of the variables. Do they have anything like that kind of accuracy with referenda?

I can't remember what the bookies said before the General Election. But lots of people seemed to think it was going to be really close. Yet the Conservatives won at a canter (big thanks to Lynton Crosby, I suspect).

Can they be so sure about this referendum? It seems to me that there's a huge amount of dislike of the EU within Britain.

52.7% Leave so far

Can someone give me a rundown on what it means for the EPL and Champions League if UK leave the EU please?

No-one knows

If they do leave, thats when the all the argy-bargy starts about the terms.

Some reckon it'll take up to 6 years for it all to get organised