Skip to main content

Britain's EU referendum: should I stay or should I go?



Britain will hold a referendum on Thursday 23 June 2016 to decide whether the country should remain in the European Union or leave the European Union. The referendum is a question that requires a simple YES or NO answer (no other answer, sentence, essay, proviso, or manifesto will be accepted).

The exact question is: SHOULD THE UNITED KINGDOM REMAIN A MEMBER OF THE EUROPEAN UNION OR LEAVE THE EUROPEAN UNION?

How is a win determined? Whichever response receives more than half of all votes cast will ‘win’ the referendum.



The referendum is being held because the Prime Minister David Cameron promised to hold one if he won the 2015 general election. So it’s origins come from politics, but each person in each political party can vote according to their belief – they are not required to vote along party lines. There are politicians within each party that have declared how they will vote – some will vote Yes and some will vote No.

Every elegible voter can vote either Yes or No. It is not mandatory to vote –  people can vote or not. British, Irish, and Commonwealth citizens over the age of 18, who have been on the United Kingdom electoral register in the past 15 years can vote (including UK nationals living abroad if they are on the UK electoral register). Citizens of EU countries cannot vote – except people from Ireland, Malta, and Cyprus.

In 1975 Britain held a referendum to determine whether it should enter the European Union. Then, of course, the response was Yes to become part of the EU. The EU is a group of 28 European countries that formed after World War II on economic grounds to cooperate on trade as a ‘single market’. Of the 28 countries, 19 use a common currency, called the euro. Britain does not use the euro – it retained the British pound.

Still undecided?



Here are excerpts of two songs to help people decide.

The first song is Don’t Go by Wretch 32 (2006-present) – number one on the singles chart in 2011 – written by Josh Kumra, Rachel Moulden, Paul Heard, and Jermaine Scott. Jermaine Scott, an English rapper, is also called Wretch 32. It was published by Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner/Chappell Music, Inc., Universal Music Publishing Group.

Don’t Go
So don't go,
Don't leave,
Please stay,
With me,
You are the only thing I need,
To get by,
To get by.

The English punk-rock group, Clash (1976-1986), noted for its song London Calling (1979), also produced a song called Stay Free (1978), and another called Should I Stay or Should I Go? (1982) published by Universal Music Publishing Group. The lyrics are by Mick Jones and Joe Strummer.

Should I Stay or Should I Go?
Should I stay or should I go now?
Should I stay or should I go now?
If I go, there will be trouble
And if I stay it will be double
So come on and let me know
Should I stay or should I go?




http://www.metrolyrics.com/dont-go-lyrics-wretch-32.html
http://www.metrolyrics.com/should-i-stay-or-should-i-go-lyrics-the-clash.html



MARTINA NICOLLS is the author of:- The Shortness of Life: A Mongolian Lament (2015), Liberia’s Deadest Ends (2012), Bardot’s Comet (2011), Kashmir on a Knife-Edge (2010) and The Sudan Curse (2009).
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

2016 update on Rike Park, Tbilisi: from construction to busy park

From a flat patch of uninteresting dirt, Rike Park in Tbilisi, Georgia, has transformed in four years (from 2014-2016) into a busy park full of trees, flower beds, sculptures, fountains, and events. Rike (Rikhe) Park is on the left bank of the Mt’k’vari River (the Kura River) near the Old City of Tbilisi. The Peace Bridge links the right bank to Rike Park. Rike Park is below the hillside Presidential Palace and, via cable car, it is the starting point for the ride to Sololaki Ridge (with the Narikala Fortress and the Mother of Georgia statue). The glass box-shaped cable car terminus was opened on 23 June 2012, and since then the park has continually developed into a ‘people’s park’ where people can walk around, eat at the nearby restaurants, sit next to the statue of American president Ronald Reagan, climb the steps to Avlabari district, and access the sights of Meidan Square, the Peace Bridge, the Metekhi Church, the Old City, the waterfall, the sulphur baths, and t...
Post a Comment
Read more

Pir-E-Kamil - The Perfect Mentor by Umera Ahmed: book review

The Perfect Mentor pbuh  (2011) is set in Lahore and Islamabad in Pakistan. The novel commences with Imama Mubeen in medical university. She wants to be an eye specialist. Her parents have arranged for her to marry her first cousin Asjad. Salar Sikander, her neighbour, is 18 years old with an IQ of 150+ and a photographic memory. He has long hair tied in a ponytail. He imbibes alcohol, treats women disrespectfully and is generally a “weird chap” and a rude, belligerent teenager. In the past three years he has tried to commit suicide three times. He tries again. Imama and her brother, Waseem, answer the servant’s call to help Salar. They stop the bleeding from his wrist and save his life. Imama and Asjad have been engaged for three years, because she wants to finish her studies first. Imama is really delaying her marriage to Asjad because she loves Jalal Ansar. She proposes to him and he says yes. But he knows his parents won’t agree, nor will Imama’s parents. ...
1 comment
Read more

Hop on hop off bus tourism comes to Tbilisi, Georgia

City Sightseeing buses have arrived in Tbilisi. The iconic red double-decker buses, a feature of many cities around the world since the company was established in Seville, Spain in 1999, is now in six continents and almost 100 cities. The company established its Tbilisi business in November 2013, with its operations commencing in February 2014. The 90-minute tour stops at 11 major locations in Tbilisi (with 2 to 5 minute waiting times at each location): the Old City (where it commences), Freedom Square, Rose Revolution Square, Marjanishvili Square, the Dry Bridge, Konka, Avlabari, Metekhi, Akhundov Museum, the Sulfur Baths, and European Square. Passengers can hop off at any stop and see the sights, hopping back onto the next bus at any time. Alternatively, passengers can remain on the bus for the whole tour and take photographs when the bus stops at each location. There are one day (24-hour) passes (for 35 lari – about $20) and 48-hour passes for 55 lari, with family d...
2 comments
Read more