How Britain’s EU bill has rocketed to £77bn
BRITAIN’S bill for EU membership has soared to £77billion a year – a cost of £1,246 to every man, woman and child in the country, new figures reveal.
It means that combined direct and indirect costs, minus the UK rebate, are running at a staggering £147,000 per minute.
The figures, released today, also show Britain is now paying almost twice as much to Brussels than previously demanded.
This is because in the EU budget for 2000-2006, our net contribution was £21.3billion – while the current budget, which ends in 2013, is likely to cost UK taxpayers £42billion.
Ukip politician Gerard Batten carried out a forensic analysis of the EU’s books in a bid to unveil the true cost of the European Union to Britain.
He laid the blame for the 97 per cent rise in our net contributions at the feet of Tony Blair for surrendering part of the EU rebate that Mrs Thatcher fought so hard to retain.
And, in addition, on David Cameron for agreeing to increase the UK’s payments last year, and the extra cost of allowing poorer Eastern European countries to join the Brussels-Strasbourg club.
Membership is an economic and democratic disaster and the only solution for Britain is unconditional withdrawal
Mr Batten said: “In this time of economic crisis, Government cutbacks in public spending, financial austerity, fear of job losses and financial hardship for many, it is absolute madness to be wasting billions of pounds every year on the ideological project of creating a United States of Europe that no one wants except an out of touch political elite. In my view, membership is an economic and democratic disaster and the only solution for Britain is unconditional withdrawal.”
His findings show that in the budget to 2006, we handed over nearly £80billion and received just under £59billion in rebate.
The UK was the second largest net contributor after Germany. Spain was the biggest winner with a net gain of almost £40billion. To put the figures into perspective, £1billion would pay for 833,000 hip replacements, or the annual wages of 48,285 nurses.
Emma Boon, of the Taxpayers’ Alliance, said: “The size of our daily contribution to the EU is outrageous.
“Much of this money is wasted with little accountability and little say for taxpayers.”
A European Commission spokeswoman said: “The UK contributes to the EU budget, like any other member state. But it equally enjoys the benefits of EU membership, most of which are difficult to quantify in cash.
“These are things like living in peace, security and democracy, in the largest single market of the world, with many cross-border benefits when travelling, studying, using mobile phones, etc.” The Treasury last night refused to comment on the figures.
