Major warns leaving EU would be ‘dangerous mistake’
By Ruth Mckee
Former Conservative party leader Sir John Major has warned it "would be a dangerous mistake" for Britain to leave the EU, just days after 81 Tory MPs rebelled against the government over the issue.
Writing in the Financial Times, the ex-prime minister predicted that the EU will change radically over the coming months and years as he outlined why the concept of a single currency across Europe was flawed from the outset.
"It is a fact that sterling did not enter the euro because we foresaw flaws in its structure. We believed monetary union without fiscal union was risky [and] that convergence of the powerful northern economies with southern Europe was unlikely (especially once Germany had absorbed her Eastern lender)," Sir John wrote.
Sir John issued a stark warning that any disruption to the already fragile economy of Europe could have devastating consequences.
"In the UK, and elsewhere, many are pressing for their nation to leave the EU, this is an extreme option that would throw up far more problems than it would solve. For the UK it would be a dangerous mistake but, even so, our relationship within the EU will shift, cool heads and clear minds are needed: our future depends on it," he said.
Sir John, who was responsible for Britain's 'opt-out' of the euro at Maastricht in 1992, outlined what would need to happen for the eurozone to fully recover.
He suggested that "judicially enforceable controls over deficits, early harmonisation of corporate taxes and a permanent chairman of the eurozone" would be the short-term options available to the beleaguered heads of states.
