Statement by TUV leader Jim Allister:
“The draft deal announced by the Prime Minister and Donald Tusk today reveals what many of us knew all along – the whole talk of “renegotiation” was a con.
“Even the UK’s modest demand for a four year ban on in work benefits is conditional on other EU member states agreeing!
“There will be no repatriation of powers from Brussels. Future EU laws will require Europhile Parliaments on the continent to back the UK position in order for proposals to be block. So much for national sovereignty!
“Crucially the UK will under this deal keep its open borders policy so there will be no check on migration.
“As UK taxpayers we pour £19 billion pa into Brussels and even with the rebate and grants we get back less than half. In 2014 Treasury figures showed that the UK contribution to the EU was £19.234 billion while the UK rebate was £4.888 billion and we got a total of £4.539 billion in EU grants. The net cost of EU membership for the UK in 2014 was £9,807,000,000.00. That translates into a staggering daily cost of £26.9m or over £1m every hour!
“Nothing about that will change as a result of Mr Cameron’s deal.”
Former UKIP MEP candidate and TUV Assembly candidate for South Down Henry Reilly added:
“I welcome today’s announcement because it officially fires the starting gun in the campaign to leave the EU. There can be no more bluff and bluster about us not knowing what deal the Prime Minister will get. We now know that there will be no change if we opt to stay in the EU.
“Brussels will continue to burden our businesses and farmers with red tape and continue to kill our fishing industry off.
“The EU will keep our borders wide open to migrants with no regard for the impact of mass immigration on local people.
“And all the while they will charge us handsomely for the privilege.
“The nonsense spun about Northern Ireland being unable to survive without EU hand-outs needs put to bed. Not only is it our own money we are getting back, but even we are net contributors. Our proportionate share of the UK’s annual contribution is of the order of £500m. Answers obtained by TUV in the Assembly clearly show that last year, 2014/15, we got back just £300m on agriculture (AQW 51652/11-16) and £133m from EU structural funds (AQW 52551/11-16).
“I look forward to playing prominent a role in TUV’s vigorous campaign urging the people to vote leave regardless of when the referendum is called”.