Survey shows even split on Euro membership
A
GTMA product story
Edited by the Engineeringtalk editorial team
Aug 16, 2002
The GTMA recently surveyed its members on their position on the Euro, one of the foremost economic issues of the day.
The GTMA recently surveyed its members on their position on the Euro, one of the foremost economic issues of the day.
If we are to believe the politicians, opinion formers and industrialists who regularly discuss the topic in the media, Britain's entry into the Euro would be either the greatest economic boon since the industrial revolution or the worst financial disaster since the bursting of the South Sea Bubble.
Are the pro-Euro lobbyists far sighted European visionaries or harebrained federalists? Are the "antis" true defenders of the British constitution or just little Englanders? Fascinatingly, the voting among these SME companies has been almost exactly evenly divided, with 51% of respondents saying that if a referendum were to be held tomorrow they would vote against joining and 49% saying they would vote in favour.
Midlanders were less in favour of joining - 37% voted yes - than members from either the North or the South of the country.
Among those who made additional comments, 21% could see no potential benefits at all in joining the Euro, of the others, economic considerations such as easier trading in Europe and financial stability were through to be the biggest potential benefits.
When questioned about the potential risks of joining, responses were more politically oriented, so that comments such as "control from Brussels", and "loss of sovereignty" occurred several times.
For the majority of respondents, exports account for less than 10% of annual turnover, and here, those companies that exported were least in favour of joining, possibly because their exports are not into Europe.
When results were compared with regard to company size, the vote was almost exactly equally divided.
The extraordinarily even division of votes for and against joining the Euro, examined by size, region and export activity, should give pause for thought before holding the referendum that would pave the way for such an irrevocable step.
Much further public debate needs to take place and more information be made available.
As part of its remit to lobby government on behalf of its membership, the GTMA is extremely interested in hearing members' views on this topic and if you have not already voted, forms are available direct from the association.
Not what you're looking for? Search the site.
Browse by category
- Consultancy and Services (906)
- Machine Building (4,549)
-
Engineering Design Software (6,217)
- Engineering Design Software (13)
- 2D CAD software (201)
- 3D CAD software (1,160)
- FEA and structural analysis software (373)
- Fluid, thermal, noise, vibration software (334)
- Simulation, modelling, validation software (922)
- Rendering, visualisation, styling software (200)
- Materials design and moulding design software (152)
- Process, instrumentation, automation software (260)
- Electrical design software (165)
- Publishing and documentation software (230)
- Maths, charting, statistics, QA software (318)
- Data, document management software (312)
- CAM, CNC, production management software (571)
- File conversion software, data capture (355)
- PLM and collaboration software (651)
-
Drives, Motors and Controls (3,384)
- Drives, Motors and Controls (1)
- Precision Motors and Gears (416)
- Industrial Drives/Controls (1,280)
- Linear Drives and Motors (115)
- Industrial Motors (499)
- Stepper and Servo Drives, Motors, Controls (1,071)
- Small Mechanical Components, Joining, Tools (1,983)
-
Control and Instrumentation (5,049)
- Control and Instrumentation (1)
- Plantwide control (1,332)
- Plant- and Machine-Wide Communications (1,180)
- Smaller-Sized PLCs (388)
- CNC and Motion Controllers (185)
- Mid-range and Large PLCs (202)
- Power Supplies, Uninterruptible Power (563)
- HMIs/Operator Interfaces (295)
- Logic Controllers, Timers and Relays (96)
- Cabling, Conduit, Signal Conditioning (807)
-
Monitoring, Measurement and Quality (5,506)
- Monitoring, Measurement and Quality (1)
- Data acquisition Software and Communications (497)
- Data Acquisition Hardware and PC I/O Boards (476)
- Electrical and Electronic Testing, PAT Equipment (633)
- Form/co-ordinate, optical, vision instruments (726)
- Gauges, Indicators and Instruments (442)
- Data loggers (421)
- Materials testing equipment (419)
- Telecomms/network test equipment, software etc (154)
- Testing and Calibration Services and Information (508)
- Testing, analysing and monitoring equipment (1,229)
-
Electrical and Electronic Equipment Design (4,188)
- Batteries, chargers and circuit protection (556)
- Connectors, Terminals, Busbars, Slip Rings (688)
- Enclosures and Equipment Cooling Fans (710)
- Knobs, Handles and Enclosure Hardware (425)
- PCs and Embedded Systems (805)
- Electrical and Electronic Subassemblies (370)
- Electrical and Electronic Components (634)
-
Materials and Processing (2,977)
- Materials and Processing (5)
- Materials and components (2,227)
- Rapid Prototyping (457)
- Materials processing and testing (288)
-
Engineering Industry News, Resources (6,107)
- Engineering Industry News, Resources (4)
- Engineering Business News, Views (388)
- Engineering Exhibitions, Events (564)
- Engineering Conferences (425)
- Engineering Seminars (401)
- Engineering Industry Developments, Awards (633)
- Engineering Guides, Newsletters (351)
- Engineering Recruitment, Employment (219)
- Engineering Training Courses (437)
- Engineering Education, Resources, Standards (842)
- Engineering Industry Reports, Surveys (597)
- Electronic Resources for Engineers (278)
- Health and Safety Legislation (402)
- Health and Safety Strategy, Risk Assessment (113)
- Health and Safety Consultancy, Software (175)
- Health and Safety Events, Training, News (278)
-
Powertrain Design (3,635)
- Powertrain Design (2)
- Bearings (953)
- Chains and belts (328)
- Gears, brakes, couplings and engines (1,450)
- Hydraulic Components (471)
- Lubricants (430)
-
Capital Equipment (3,406)
- Capital Equipment (1)
- Manufacturing Machinery and Plant Equipment (467)
- Production line blowers and fans (64)
- Compressors and Air Treatment (515)
- Electronics Manufacturing, Tools, Instruments (192)
- Electrical hardware (131)
- Machinery and Production Equipment (1,101)
- Robotics, Handling and Storage (935)
-
Sensors (7,125)
- Sensors (8)
- Accelerometers and Vibration Sensors (430)
- Loadcells, Force Sensors, Torque Sensors (706)
- Pressure sensors (625)
- Flowmeters and Flow Sensors (621)
- Level Sensors and Leak Detectors (529)
- Linear Position Sensors (405)
- Rotary Position, Tilt and Angular Sensors (551)
- Proximity Sensors (707)
- Gas, Chemical, Radiation, Magnetic Sensors (285)
- Humidity and Environmental Sensors (154)
- Temperature sensors (613)
- Vision and Colour Sensors (1,388)
- Barcode Sensors (103)
- Valves, Pumps, Process Hardware (3,649)
