Britain is leaving the European Union, and it's monumental.
Most people aren't really sure what the leaving of Britain will mean, or what major decisions will be made as a result of "Brexit." Here is what we do know.
What even is the E.U.?
The European Union is a group of nations in Europe that work together. Members of the E.U. have an easier time trading and their citizens can travel freely between other E.U. nations without a visa. Some other states involved in the European Union are Belgium, Austria, the Czech Republic, France, Italy, Germany, Spain, the Netherlands, and Greece, along with many others.
The vote wasn't unanimous.
As you know, the U.K. consists of many countries (England, Scotland, Wales, and Ireland). Scotland voted to stay in the E.U., which is not what the U.K. is doing. Scottish officials are outraged that they will potentially be forced to leave, even though their country voted to stay. This is important because dissatisfaction with the U.K.'s decision may cause Scotland to remove itself from the U.K., which has already been debated in the past. If the U.K. breaks up each country would become weaker without the support of the others. Aside from individual countries' results, the vote as a whole was nearly fifty-fifty, with Yes winning by only about 3%.
Britain has its reasons.
Being part of the European Union causes the U.K. to have less power, since some decisions are made with the rest of the E.U. Power is obviously something all countries strive to have, so anything that threatens the U.K.'s power is bound to be controversial. The U.K. doesn't agree with many regulations the European Union has set, like not being able to obtain better materials to improve the safety of those on the road. A major argument from U.K. citizens is that since the E.U. allows its citizens to travel without a visa, many immigrants have come to the U.K. and taken jobs that could otherwise be filled by British citizens.
The fate of immigrants is unclear.
Since leaving the E.U. means there will be no more immigrants moving to the u.k. without a visa, it's unclear what will happen to those who immigrated before the change. Will they be sent back to their original homes or will they be allowed to stay? There won't be a clear answer until all issues are decided on once the U.K. officially leaves.
The European economy will suffer.
Being part of the European Union means that trade is much easier between the U.K. and other member nations. The U.K. will suffer the greatest, since its ties with such a large amount of countries will be cut. This will severely hinder the British economy and reverse the reasons many people migrated there. Having to renegotiate trade with these countries will take time and further hurt the economy, since time is money. Other nations that depend on Britain to purchase their goods will also suffer and have to find new trade partners or renegotiate very quickly.
While the U.K. will benefit in terms of regulations and immigration, its economy will not. This decision is full of trade-offs, but hopefully will end well for all parties involved.
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