LORD SUGAR: WHY
I’ve been
in business for 50 years. I’ve seen some pretty daft
ideas in my time. And I’ll tell you one of them:
The young
generation might see me as this fellow with his Rolls Royce, flying around in
my private jet, and they might think that I am out of touch with the average
man in the street. Well, they’re wrong. I am that average man, who, at the age
of 17, started my business from a council flat in Hackney.
I bought
some stuff, sold it for a profit, bought some more, and went on to manufacture
things, selling to my main market:
But to do
that, like me, you need an economy that is strong and open. I remember prior to
us being a member of the EU, trying to move goods around to
When we
entered the EU, it was a breath of fresh air for me. It opened up a massive market.
I was free to sell to and buy from who I wanted and where I wanted. Honestly,
that’s how my companies prospered.
Who knows
what would happen if we left? Not a lot
of people know that when Americans try to sell cars to the EU they have to pay
10% import duty. It’s unimaginable if we exit the EU and tariffs are introduced
on our car exports. I’m sure our Japanese friends who have invested billions in
our country and employ tens of thousands of people will have to rethink their
location. We don’t want that. Think of all the people employed in car plants
here.
The
Brexit people will argue no tariffs will be imposed, but they forget to say
that, in order to make that happen and exit the EU, we’ll still have to pay in
billions to the EU to allow free circulation.
So you might ask: why leave? The song “There’s a Hole in my Bucket” comes to mind here.
Now I’m
not saying the EU is perfect. But you don’t sort something out by walking out
of it. I never got a business deal I wanted by storming out of a boardroom and
then expecting them to dance to my tune. The truth is, whatever decisions the
The
Brexit mob give us all this rubbish about being like
You’ve
even got some people saying: “well,
When I
talk to people in the street who are confused over this, some say: “well look,
let’s give it a try”. That’s a ridiculous and dangerous attitude. You couldn’t
be talking to a bigger gambler than me. I’ve gambled all my life in business.
But when it’s the fate of our country you’re being asked to put on the table, I
say it’s a gamble too far.
I’m not
the only one saying this. You’ve got leading economists, big time business
bosses, scientists, politicians – people who are normally at each other’s
throats – singing from the same hymn sheet. If you can get them all agreeing on
something, that gives you a big clue about how important this all is.
As for
me, I come at this from a neutral perspective. I’m not affiliated to a
political party. I’ve got no personal agenda. My only agenda is, is that having
lived in Britain for 69 years, a country which I love, I don’t want to see a
massive mistake being made by those who simply don’t understand the
ramifications of leaving the EU.
People
try to dismiss