Submitted by janesalvage on
Why the UK should stay in the European Union
Brexit will cost £2000 million a week, says the government's own report. Is it worth it? And will the NHS receive the £350 million weekly injection promised by Boris Johnson and the Vote Leave campaign? The answer to both questions is obviously No. See https://www.isitworthit.org.uk
The EU is such a complex phenomenon that a simple Yes or No was a hard call. It’s easy to deplore big bureaucracies and the self-interest of this international capitalists’ club. The rubbish spoken about the EU by many of those who want out, and their media pals, doesn’t help. Our individual decisions should be based on evidence and common sense, not political posturing and power games.
On the plus side, this Europe-wide organization and its networks is of huge positive importance - never more than today, with our world ravaged by human-induced climate change, armed conflict and the migration it triggers, gender-based violence, and health problems that know no borders. Nursing has important contributions to make to these issues, and the EU does vital work on all of them. The UK must therefore remain part of finding solutions and maintaining international peace and stability. This will be much harder if we retreat to our crumbling island fortress.
With Brexit, nurses would be absent from yet another major international forum. Our voice, that has previously offered much to global and European nursing development, would not be heard or heeded. It’s also a matter of self-interest. For example, the Royal College of Nursing has worked through EU networks to create legislation to make a real difference on issues that matter to every British nurse - from needlestick and back injury to better working conditions.
I’ve worked on many EU-funded projects to empower nurses throughout Europe and beyond, and improve their practice and education for health improvement. They have enabled UK nurse practitioners, teachers, researchers and policy-makers to work in partnership, learn and share with colleagues from many countries, and bringing home benefits and funds. If we finally leave, we will let them and ourselves down. It's already a great embarrassment to explain to all my puzzled colleagues from other countries why the UK is bent on this suicide mission. It's not too late to stop it.