I publish the evidence that membership of the EU’s Single Market provided no benefit to the UK.

5 min readJan 9, 2023

It's Official: UK’s growth rate fell after joining the EU’s ‘Single Market.

“The EU single market did damage to UK business,”

It’s far easier to do business in the UK than in the EU, says a World Bank report. As the EU celebrates 30 years of its ‘Single Market’ I review how badly it has done.

The EU’s fabled ‘Single Market’ was founded 30 years ago, on 01 Jan 1993, and the EU is celebrating. But what do they have to celebrate?

I have reviewed the latest reports from the EU Commission on the failings in its Single Market — particularly in respect of the services sector which accounts for 80% of the UK economy. I have also reviewed the World Bank’s latest ‘Ease of Doing Business’ country rankings, which were referred to in a major EU Commission report.

World Bank global rankings show the UK is a much nicer place to do business than the EU

UK’s world ranking: 8th out of 190 countries
EU27’s world ranking : 40th (average)

[Source: World Bank ‘Ease of Doing Business report 2021, last updated 22 Dec 2022.]

The EU’s ‘Single Market’ doesn’t make it easier to do business

The World Bank’s rankings clearly show how the UK is streets ahead of the EU average when it comes to ‘the ease of doing business’.

How some key EU economies fare, compared to the rest of the world

It’s easier to do business in North Macedonia (№16) than in Germany (№21)
It’s easier to do business in Georgia (№7) than in Spain (№30)
It’s easier to do business in Kazakhstan (№24) than in France (№32)
It’s easier to do business in Azerbaijan (№27) than in the Netherlands (№41)
It’s easier to do business in Rwanda (№37) than in Belgium (№45)
It’s easier to do business in Armenia (№46) than in Italy (№57)

[Source: World Bank ‘Ease of Doing Business report 2021, last updated 22 Dec 2022.]

The World Bank says: “‘Ease of doing business ranks economies from 1 to 190, with first place being the best. The ranking of economies is determined by sorting the aggregate ease of doing business scores. A high ranking (a low numerical rank) means that the regulatory environment is conducive to business operation.”

The World Bank’s rankings look at a wide variety of important factors when doing business in any given country.

Whatever the shortcomings in the World Bank’s methodology in ranking countries might be, one thing is clear. Brexit Britain is far superior to the EU27 when it comes to doing business.

The UK has consistently outshone the EU27 in these World Bank reports, despite the impediments imposed by the increasing raft of EU Commission interference on the UK in terms of laws, directives and regulations.

It is now essential that the UK Government of Rishi Sunak proceeds with all speed in repealing the 4,000+ EU laws which hold Brexit Britain back. In the seventh year since the country voted for Brexit, I am sure that a very dim view will be taken by voters if the Civil Service drags its feet and if Ministers do not impose their will, with strict targets to be achieved. All these restrictions need to be removed THIS YEAR — as promised.

Once again I will have ‘triggered’ those who are still fighting for the United Kingdom to rejoin the European Union. The research shows that the UK easily outranks the EU27 when it comes to doing business — and that is according to the World Bank.

It seems that the more incontrovertible the evidence I provide that they were wrong, the louder the howls of outrage coming from Rejoiner-Remainers.

Given this, THIS new report today is equally unlikely to go down well amongst the devotees of “The European Movement”, chaired UNTIL two weeks ago by arch Remainer-Rejoiner Baron Andrew Adonis. I advise them to look away now.

In 25 years of the EU Single Market, the UK’s growth rate fell

This week the EU is celebrating the 30th anniversary of the launch of the Single Market. The EU claims this project as its ‘greatest achievement’ so decided to look at its effect on the United Kingdom’s growth rate.

The premise was simple. 25 years is a sufficiently long period over which to gauge the beneficial effects of so momentous an ‘achievement’. The premise was simple. 25 years is a sufficiently long period over which to gauge the beneficial effects of so momentous an ‘achievement’. I, therefore, analysed the UK’s average growth rate in the 25 years before, and the 25 years after, the advent of the Single Market.

Membership of the EU Single Market did not increase UK growth

‘Before’ — 1968–1992: average 2.4% annual growth rate
‘After’ — 1993–2017: average 2.2% annual growth rate
In the 25 years after the Single Market started, the UK’s average annual growth rate didn’t rise, it fell.
The EU single market did damage to UK business. In the first 10 years, our car output halved as EU imports took over. We lost most of our steel industry to the EU and then Chinese competition.
“The Common Agricultural Policy forced cuts in milk production, blocked beef exports, paid farmers to rip out orchards and led to big reductions in home production of vegetables and flowers. The Common Fishing Policy led to most of our fish going to foreign vessels.
“It is time we encouraged much more home production. The EU trade Remain goes on about is many more imports than exports.”
The Rt Hon Sir John Redwood MP, 06 Jan 2023

Andrew Adonis and his ‘European Movement

Until two weeks ago Andrew Adonis was Chairman of the ‘European Movement’ — a lobbying group which has been assembling a membership of pro-EU people and those who favour the UK rejoining the EU. This British movement has been part-funded by George Soros, the foreign billionaire. Adonis’s political allegiances have varied between the SDP, LibDem, and Labour parties.

He was previously a writer and local councillor, before becoming an advisor to Tony Blair and Gordon Brown’s governments. In 2005 Mr Blair made Andrew Adonis a Life Peer and he was then given ministerial positions before subsequently being appointed to the Cabinet. As Transport Secretary it is said that he was the pioneer of the HS2 project.

Baron Adonis has never been elected as an MP, nor as an MEP, although he has been selected as a candidate on more than one occasion before later dropping out. When he stood as a Labour MEP candidate in the 2019 European elections, he not only failed to get elected but Labour’s share of the vote in his constituency fell to just 6.5%.

Despite his record, Baron Adonis became a Director of ‘The People’s Vote’ — a pro-EU campaign group. The ‘people’ had of course already had a vote, which is more commonly known as the EU Referendum. In the largest electoral mandate in British history, the people voted to leave the European Union. Nevertheless, Lord Adonis and his colleagues campaigned to overturn this — and are still doing so with another nobody at the helm who has done nothing worthwhile in his life.

Sources: Office for National Statistics World Bank