Britain should flee the sinking EU ship – or risk being sucked down with it

The eurozone ship will sink sooner rather than later, says Jim Mellon. It is better to be sitting in a comfortably-appointed lifeboat, than to be dragged under in its wake.

I am a businessman with investments in the European Union (EU). I am a big fan of a free-trade zone, an aspect of the EU that works well. I am, however, deeply concerned by the EU's declared agenda of moving to full federalism. This is badly thought out, yet every time the strategy shows signs of faltering, the reaction of the unelected bosses in Brussels is to push for even further integration.

The sensible move would be a pause to allow the EU's institutions to consolidate and develop. One model might have been the 50-year twin-track absorption of Hong Kong into China, which has worked fairly well so far. In contrast, the EU's 28 nations, with highly disparate cultures and income levels, simply cannot integrate at the pace that the likes of Jean-Claude Juncker, the European Commission president, feel is possible. So the fractures are becoming increasingly evident and dangerous.

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