From: J Corbally (icorb@indigo.ie)
Date: Thu Oct 10 2002 - 17:30:55 MDT
>Date: Thu, 10 Oct 2002 12:28:24 +0930
>From: "Emlyn O'regan" <oregan.emlyn@healthsolve.com.au>
>Subject: RE: ECONOMICS: Reality bites
>Actually Olga didn't write that, I did.
>I think that the situation with redistribution of resources ala welfare is
>quite a bit more complex than you make out. I made a mistake by calling it
>welfare; I should have used some larger term like government services.
>Including that old saw, roads.
>It seems to me that the EU has a quasi-opt-out setup now, in that an EU
>passport gives you very wide choice over where to go work and live. This
>means much greater freedom of movement (within the EU). For those who are
>actually in the EU, how's that working out? Any interesting stories to tell
>about mass movements between countries due to legislative/economic
>differences?
>Emlyn
Even before the removal of the barriers, working in other EU nations was
quite common. It is of course more common now, but it was never a big deal
really. My Father worked in Holland when he was quite young, long before
the single market, and many British men travelled to Europe in the 1980's
to find work. The vast majority of them returned home.
Someone moving from here to Germany would not say that they are
"emigrating". In fact, unless they're moving to the U.S., the word doesn't
get used very much here these days. What I think would be a more desirable
development would be an expansion of the Schengen area, within which one
doesn't need a passport to travel country to country.
The mass labour movements predicted from poor countries to rich didn't
materialize. The increased prosperity Europe-wide, and the general
resistance of most people to up and leave, scuppered any exodus
scenarios. I believe large scale movement did occur from East to West
Germany during the early years of reunification, but this was a unique
situation given that East Germany didn't have to go through a period of
meeting membership requirements.
Incidently, the current batch of 10 candidates for membership are in much
better shape economically (and probably socially) than Ireland was when it
joined in '72. Some are even capable of becoming net contributors straight
off. Eastern Europeans coming to Ireland make up a much smaller percentage
than those coming from African nations as refugees and asylum
seekers. Politics rather than Economics seems to be the bigger contributor
to mass movement.
James....
"If you can't take a little bloody nose, maybe you ought to go back home and
crawl under your bed. It's not safe out here. It's wondrous, with treasures
to satiate desires both subtle and gross. But it's not for the timid."
-Q, Star Trek:TNG episode 'Q Who'
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