Wales Governance Centre report misses the point: There’s no such thing as EU money

Commenting on a report issued this morning by the Wales Governance Centre, a spokesman for Vote Leave Cymru, has claimed that Wales would be better off after a Vote to Leave.

He said:

“Reports such as these ignore one crucial fact: there is no such thing as European money. It’s money that hardworking families have paid in taxes, and money which could be better spent locally.

“In any case, we do not recognise these projections, and if the UK votes to leave the EU on June 23, Wales will be financially better off.

“The UK currently spends £10 billion a year more than it receives in so-called EU funds and Wales would be entitled to its share of that dividend if we Vote to Leave.”

“It’s also worth noting that these projections are based on the funds that Wales currently receives from the EU, and there are absolutely no guarantees over the amount of support Wales will receive beyond 2020 – or that these funding streams will even continue.

“That’s why the safest option is to Vote to Leave.

“If we leave the EU we can spend our money on our priorities, like the NHS, schools and housing. And we could once again be masters of our own destiny, free to sign trade agreements with new trading partners the world over – including with the EU itself.”