Rabbie

[quote user="alittlebitfrench"]  BTW, what is it with Scotland wanting to join the EU ? More Scottish live in England than in Scotland . [/quote] Before the UK was formed Scotland had always  more trading and cultural contacts with other European countries than England. There was also the Auld Alliance with France. I was interested in your assertion that more Scots live in England than in Scotland. Do you have the figures for this? How many of these are people born in Scotland who live in England and how many are English born of Scots parents? I personally know of quite  a few English who live in and enjoy Scotland. Perhaps the relatively high Remain vote in London is due to Scots living and working there

You are quite correct. Scotland had a swing towards EU membership compared to 1975 as did Northern Ireland. I heard Boris Johnson say there was no hurry to invoke Article 50 so I imagine they are planning detailed talks to get a relatively swift settlement. The sooner we get definite answers the sooner we can all plan for our futures. I don't like the result but with a clear majority we have to accept it. Of course, under Mrs Thatcher's rules for the devolution referenda in 1979 this result would not be accepted as it has not got the support of 40% of the electorate but that was then and this is now. The markets seem to bounced back a little so perhaps we have seen the worst at present. For many expats what will be the most worrying is whether UK state pensions continue to be index linked or are frozen at the levels when we actually leave

[quote user="Hoddy"]I've been looking at a recipe for 'Gliko". It lists something called slaked lime. I don't even know what it is in English. Can anyone help ? I'd like to know what it is and where I might get it from.[/quote]Slake Lime is the lime used by farmers to control the ph of the soil. It is also used in making lime mortar. You may be able to get some at a builders merchant but possibly they will only sell it in larger quantities. According to Wikipedia it is also used for pickling and in water treatment.

[quote user="alittlebitfrench"]It would be very funny if the UK voted out and then went on to win the Euro 2016. That would be fantastic. The irony. Would they have to give back the cup ?[/quote]<Pedant mode>The UK does not have a team in the Euro 2016 so cannot win it.</pedant mode> There are three teams from the UK playing in the competition, England, Wales and Northern Ireland. I will be watching their future progress with interest and hoping all three do well. It would be nice if it was an all-UK final regardless of the final result.

[quote user="ebaynut"] I see Rabbie at the end of your posts you have a new ‘ditty’       There are some causes worth dying for - there are no causes worth killing for" Albert Camus       That is the sort of comment you believe in I guess, so the Germanys plans to invade the UK back in the war, would  have not made you want to kill anyone then who tried to invade this country, rape the women and kill your mother ???   Just so long as you would not have to do it, you would not mind others if they did I guess.   No wonder you don't believe in the UK, I wonder are you even English/British?? [/quote]Once again, EBN, you seem to have got some things wrong so allow me to respectfully correct you. Firstly I took the Camus quote to refer to people like the Orlando killer and the murderer of Jo Cox and not to wars or protecting family. I did not take it to be about self-defence. As I was in the Army I am not a pacifist so you guess incorrectly. I do believe strongly in the UK which is why I believe we should remain in the EU. In fact I think there is a high risk of the UK breaking up if there is a win for Brexit. Also I can assure you that I was born British from a long line of  British citizens. My father successfully traced back our ancestry for more than 400 years. However you were right on one point(the law of averages does sometimes work) I am not English but live in England and have many english friends. Finally I always feel that the first person to resort to derogatory remarks to be one who is losing the argument.

[quote user="idun"] I shall be glad when it is all over, as I am a bit sick of the accusations that immigration and Turkey are the only reason anyone would vote to leave, and that I see and hear all too often. [/quote] I think this because these are the two things that the official Leave campaign are going on about now that their maths about our EU contributions have been called into question to put it kindly. Other more cynical than me might say they are being economical with the truth.

Thank .you RH and YCCMB for your sensible contributions to this debate. Now a few thoughts of my own. The Leave side have endevoured to make much of the possible entry of Turkey to the EU and the possible formation of an EU army. Both of these are not likely to happen for a very long time if at all. They oppose the EU army on the grounds it would weaken NATO being seemingly unaware that Turkey was a founder member of NATO and one of only two members that had a land frontier with the Soviet Union. Seems a bit like muddled thinking to me. Many of those people I know who want to leave and  who are not racist or xenophobic seem to be hoping for a return to Britain's imperial past, forgetting that in the sixties and seventies before we joined, there were strikes, power cuts, devaluation and even a three day week. They ignore the real possibility that an Exit win may well trigger a second Scottish referendum and chaos in Northern Ireland. Michael Howard says british law would decide but which british legal system -English, Scottish or Northern Irish. A devaluation will hit a lot of people of all ages very hard especially in the short term. Imports will immediately go up in price. I have yet to see a convincing case being made for leaving - least of all by the official campaign

Ebaynut, I have neither the time nor the inclination to plough through Mr Trump's utterances but he does seem to have a strong appeal among the redneck white supremacists. This together with his utterances on banning all muslims and building a wall give me the strong impression that he certainly has racist tendencies somewhat stronger than those expressed in many a bar in Britain. You do not need to listen for very long in the UK to hear casual remarks that are racists. I would be very surprised if Mr Trump would condemn these types of remarks.  

I see The Times has now come out in favour of the UK remaining in the EU. Does this reflect the fact that a majority of Times readers also favour remain? It is also noticable that the Scottish edition of the Sun also supports staying in. It seems the Murdoch press seems to reflect the views of its readers rather than take a lead based  on logic and reason.

Idun, I am sure no-one is trying to tar and feather you. Indeed, IMO you make a better case for leaving than the actual campaign has done. We must remember that the concept of the EU arose from the wreckage of the second World War. Churchill saw the need for a United States of Europe to act as a counter balance to both the USA and the Soviet Union and also to prevent a future european war. Whether he wanted Britain to be part of this is less clear but he never ruled it out. After all in 1940 he did offer full union with France. The high unemployment in the North of England is at least as much due to the London-centric policies of successive UK governments as it is due to membership of the EU. No real attempt has been to help those affected by the decline of the traditional industries such as coal mining and shipbuilding. The EU has suffered in the UK from being the victim of many so-called Euromyths put about by a largely hostile and foreign owned press. No wonder voters are confused

As someone who is UK resident and exposed to the campaign on a daily basis I have to say that the immigration issue is being exploited by the Leave side with little regard to the facts. Some of the posts on social media are definitely racist. There is a perception in the UK that immigration is much higher than it actually is along with other misconceptions about the EU. In fact becaue of its rebate the UK pays the lowest contribution measured as a percentage of national income. Over half the UK immigrants come from countries outside the EU and we have full powers to control this. The fact is that we need these immigrants to do the sort of poorly paid jobs that UK citizens are unwilling to do. This will not change as a result of the referendum and it is IMO dishonest and misleading to say so. I have also seen figures to suggest that the number of EU immigrants is matched by the number of UK citizens living in other EU countries. It is also interesting that the Prime Ministers of Australia, New Zealand, Canada and India have all come out in support of Britain remaining in the EU as have the vast majority of other world leaders except for Putin. I doubt that Putin has the best interests of the UK at heart.

[quote user="cajal"] To be honest, Billy Bragg doesn't immediately spring to mind as someone I would foremostly seek out to elicit information.  However I am able to appreciate his sentiments with: "Not all people voting leave are racists, but all racists will vote leave". I wasn't aware of any UKip posters let alone that one had been reported to the police. I always understood that anybody is able to report pretty well anything to the police. Whether they implement proceedings is, I think, up to the CPS. regards cajal [/quote]I am always happy to bring enlightment where people are unawares. This link explains all

Pault, I was going by what I read on the BBC website. It has just been repeated on the BBC news that all referendum campaigning has been suspended as a mark of respect. Nobody, least of all me, has suggested that the crime had or had not a connection to the debate.

Following the sad death of MP Jo Cox today all campaigning has been suspended. Can I please ask everyone to respect this and not contribute to this thread until the campaign resumes

I think the story about EU citizens registering as British to get a vote is an urban myth based on the fact that some councils sent out polling cards in error to EU citizens. They will not be allowed to vote. Personally I feel that EU citizens who are long term residents of the U.K. should be allowed to vote but that's the rules.

[quote user="idun"] I have not even mentioned the fishing...... because I know quite a few working fishermen. OR the human rights act...... grrrrrrrrrrrr when the victim can end up being treat like they are not at fault and not the perp and votes for prisoners............grrrrrrrr [/quote] Idun, I respect your views on the EU which you have never made a secret of.  I do sympathise with our fishermen and we should try harder to get a better deal for them However, I do disagree strongly with your views on the Human Rights Act. It was something that Churchill fought for and he instigated the formation of the European Court of Human Rights which is not an EU court. To repeal the Human Rights Act would send a powerful message to people like Putin that these basic rights are not important. To me this act is a sign of a civilised society. We should become an active member and lead the drive for reforms within the EU

[quote user="woolybanana"]Why has this thread suddenly bounced to the top again; I certainly did not post until this message?[/quote]It attracted a post which I thought was Spam so I deleted it.

If there is a narrow win for Brexit on a relatively low turnout then Parliament could overturn the result. Hopefully not as that would almost certainly provoke a constitutional crisis and probably an early General Election. I hope that the result will respected by all regardless of the result. In the exit case perhaps the terms for leaving should be put to another referendum as I am sure they will not be as good as the Brexiteers would have us believe. Time will tell.

With only 10 days to go before we know the result (looking more and more likely to be a win for Brexit) does anyone else feel disappointed in the way the campaign has been conducted by both sides. The Brexit side seem determined to repeat inaccurate statements about the sums of money involved and have no problems spending the same money numerous times. The remain side have failed to date to produce any good reasons for staying in and concentrated solely on scare tactics. The one exception has been Gordon Brown who has put a positive case for staying in. I personally will be voting to remain because I believe in the absence of other evidence that it is in the best interests of the UK to do so. I also find it significant that foreign leaders wanting a Brexit include Putin who I am sure is motivated only by what is in his own interests. The vast majority of leaders have come out in favour of our remaining. If there is a Brexit vote then it will take 2 years to negotiate the leaving terms and an indeterminate period afterwards while the remaining EU countries ratify the agreement. Over 50% of UK immigrants come from outside the EU and so we currently can control their numbers. It is naive to suggest that we can reduce this in the future by a significant amount. I also think it unlikely that the EU will give us a wonderful deal without it costing us. Trade negotiations tend to favour the larger partner and I can see no reason to believe this will be different. I know there are people who take a different view and I hope they will express it in a calm, reasonable and friendly manner. We all have a right to our views so can we discuss this without personal abuse. 

I think the reason for this may be rooted in culture and also in the large crowds that football attracts compared to other sports. This results in the small percentage of idiots reaches a critical mass that can cause trouble. It does seem that certain clubs have much more aggressive supporters than others. When I first moved south to London in the 1960s I remember being surprised at the high number of arrests at every Millwall game even though there were comparatively low attendances. I was used to the figures for Rangers and Celtic but the arrests in these matches was less than the Millwall figures despite attendances being three or four times higher. The vast majority of football supporters are just as well behaved as the supporters of other sports. It is the small minority that give it a bad reputation.  

Sodium Bicarbonate is Baking Soda not Baking Powder which is a mixture of Sodium Bicarbonate and Cream of Tartar.

unfortunately that is also becoming a feature of British commentary. The last commentator who  get things neutral was the late great  Bill Maclaren whose rugby matches were a fine example of how they should be. Who can forget his "there's a wee bit argy-bargy going on"  but you could never tell who he favoured from his remarks

This link gives the UK government rules for bringing pets into the UK.   I have checked with my wife who is a vet and she confirms the advice already given. Just remember that pets accept these things pretty well and they will be just be happy to be with the people they know and love. Good luck

We have one fitted in our house in the UK. It is a three storey house with the aerial fitted high up. Only needed for terrestial TV. It made a big difference to the old analogue TV and Digital works fine  with it. I have never tried Digital without it.

We have a Bosch dishwasher and it has been excellent. We have a Miele washing machine which has also very good. I can recommend both makes