Rejoin the EU

Many of the challenges we face in the 21st century such as climate change, economic prosperity, security, and social protection, cannot be solved by looking at problems from a national perspective. The European Union has been a major contributor towards peace and prosperity in Europe for over 70 years and Volt believes it can be the driving force for current challenges on our shared continent as well. 

The UK’s 2016 decision to leave the EU and shut down many of the paths towards greater cooperation needlessly complicates the ability to address such challenges, bringing no tangible benefit to either side and diminishing both the United Kingdom and the European Union. The UK’s place is at the heart of Europe and Volt therefore strongly advocates that the UK should rejoin the EU as a full and active member as soon as possible.

Volt realises that after years of antagonism and emotionally charged debate the road may not be straightforward and supports the strengthening of links wherever possible to build positive reciprocity. We propose a number of intermediary steps to prepare the UK for eventual membership and alleviate some of the immediate political and economic concerns that have arisen due to Brexit.

Leaving the Erasmus+ programme has reduced our student’s abilities to grow and learn. Whilst Turing alleviates some concerns, it does not bring back enough benefits to outweigh the costs of leaving Erasmus+ and the access students have to European research institutions.

The UK is not planning on rejoining Euratom, a key organisation for the development of fission and fusion projects and will instead fund domestic research. We believe this to be the wrong, and more expensive, choice that prolongs a long-term transition away from fossil fuels.