EU membership benefits the South East says Sharon Bowles MEP
"A report by Britain's biggest business organisation, the CBI, has confirmed that every person in the UK profits from EU membership each year. The report explained that each Briton benefits by £1225, compared with an annual contribution of just £116 per person.
"The report follows a YouGov / CBI poll which found that 78% of British firms favour staying in the EU, including 77% of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), and 6% of businesses said they would close if the UK left the EU.
"212,370 jobs in the South East of England depend on the UK's EU membership, the highest number in any region outside of London. Pulling out of the EU would risk throwing our economic recovery away and put hundreds of thousands of jobs at risk. Liberal Democrats, as the party of 'In', are helping businesses to create more jobs in the UK by exploiting the many benefits of our EU membership. We have already helped deliver one million new jobs since 2010 and we aim to deliver one million more.
"The CBI's poll and report clearly contradicts the Eurosceptic argument that Britain is better off outside the EU. Despite what Nigel Farage and his UKIP colleagues might say, the UK benefits a great deal from being in the EU. Not only do we have access to the biggest trading bloc in the world, the Single Market, but we are better able to work with our European partners on a whole range of issues, from tackling climate change to catching criminals."