Douglas Carswell's Blog

Outside the EU? That doesn't mean we'd be like Norway

The Financial Times has a curious article in which it claims "Tory MPs are looking at Norway as a model for how Britain could thrive outside the EU".

We are?  That was news to me. 

I've yet to come across any colleagues advocating that we adopt the Norwegian model.  Nor does the FT article provide any examples of a Tory MP saying we should.

As the FT article helpfully points out, the Norwegian model is far from ideal.  It might be outside the EU, but it still has to adopt a lot of EU made rules and regulations - although nothing like as many as we do.

Europhiles often claim that if we quit the EU, we, too, would end up "like Norway" - having to transpose into law regulations over which we had no influence.

How about we adopt the Swiss approach instead? Outside the EU, without having to transpose EU rules into national law. 

Of course, Swiss firms wanting to trade with the EU still have to conform with EU rules.  But so do Chinese, Indian or Australian firms wanting to sell to the EU.

Switzerland does make bilateral deals with the EU.  At the same time she is free to cut trade deals with the world outside the EU where the growth is.

And free from all that energy-sapping red tape, Switzerland manages to do four and a half times more trade with the EU from outside than we do from within.  

Outside the EU, Britain would have to conform with EU rules when looking to sell things to Europe.  But we would not have to apply those EU regulations across every aspect of economic and commercial activity.  As a result we would become more competitive - and better able to sell to overseas customers.

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