This month the voters decide on Europe

The referendum campaign is hotting up as the June 23 date looms large and so far  probably the only issue that many people agree upon, is it could be 'the biggest decision' voters will be asked to take. Well, this year anyway.

But is that really true? As with much of the campaign so far neither side can say what will actually happen should the British voters opt to leave the EU, because so far nobody has. Left the EU that is.

The campaign to stay in the EU is led by the prime minister, along with most of the opposition parties, big business, big trade unions, an impressive line up of 'important' or 'famous' people and beneficiaries of public funding in general. It is supported by the unelected EU  bureaucrats, the EU presidents - yes there are several of them - the President of America, the leaders of the G7 countries and backed by plenty of EU funding.

The 'Leave' campaign - the official one that gets some government cash to spend on the campaign - appears to be led by former London Mayor and Member of Parliament, Boris Johnson who is a likely challenger for David Cameron's day job as Prime Minister and leader of the Conservative Party when this is all over. So the outcome might be winner takes all. The other main advocates of leaving the EU are the UK Independence Party - UKIP - whose main purpose, or raison d'être as our French friends might say, is to quit the EU. UKIP paradoxically are the biggest group of UK MPs in the European Parliament. Or  'mock' parliament as it has no powers to sponsor, promote or reject laws. UKIP head up some rag tag coalition of groups and individuals who just don't want anything to do with Europe.

Helpfully, well may be, into this arena The  Electoral Commission has issued a small leaflet explaining the whole election process and  offering a summary of the  'Vote Remain' and 'Vote Leave' key points.

The 'lets stay in side 'stands accused of what the British press call 'Project Fear'- in short bombarding the electorate with a whole catalogue of disasters that will be visited on Britain like some biblical plague of frogs if they dare to vote to leave. The three key issues for them are:

• Stronger - a larger economy, stronger leadership on the world stage and getting more out than we put in.
• Safer - by fighting cross border crime, tackling terrorism and climate change.
• Better off - more jobs with 3 million linked to EU trade, lower prices for families and more trade for business.

The 'lets leave and govern ourselves' side's arguments are summed up as:-

• EU law controls UK migration policy - more than a quarter of a million people came into the UK in the last 12 months, enough to fill a city the size of Newcastle.
• The EU  is growing - 9 members when we joined and its 28 now with 5 more to come.
• We pay £350 million a week to the EU budget - thats a lot of money!

The headline issues of the stay side - Stronger, Safer, Better Off - are in themselves hardly contentious aspirations, but associated with the EU need some justification as to the relevance of the EU in such achievements. Clearly the British economy has been stronger in the past and nothing to do with the EU and 'we get more out than we put in is demonstrably false' - even the EU acknowledges Britain is one of the net contributors. Safer links crime across borders, tackling terrorism and climate change. Cross border crime is undoubtably more of an issue due to the EU's obsession with free movement across borders. What role does the EU have in tackling terrorism that is not the role of national governments already and genuine international co-operation such as Interpol? And 'climate change' - even its believers don't claim safety as the main issue. It is worth adding that it is the American supported NATO  that has kept the peace in Europe since the end of World War 2. The 3 million jobs is based on a 15 year old review and prices have gone up in the EU - don't believe it, then check against American prices.

Now view Europe - the movie

Is the european business model obsolete?

With the UK Referendum less than a month away just what does the EU  actually deliver for England?

Take a look at this documentary that asks the relevant questions.

Europe - the movie

The use of a motion picture to tell a story  was one of the most compelling methods of communication developed during the 20th century.

But it wasn't just Disney that utilised the evolving communication opportunity to engage with cinema audiences. Politicians recognised the potential of the movies to appeal to voters in a more subtle way than advertising via posters and billboards could. Advertising needs to focus  on a single idea, communicated via a clever headline, and/or an arresting image and be associated with the branding of the political party.   The written word, a sound radio broadcast and movies provided the voters with the rationale, the back story and validation of the 'call to action' to vote. In the politicians' hands the movie became propaganda and none more versed in the black arts than Dr Joseph Goebbels who in 1933 was appointed Germany's Minister for Public Enlightenment and Propaganda. Within 3 years of his appointment his ministry was financing three quarters of all German feature films and in due course, via censorship and legislation soon controlled the film industry along with radio and theatre. The 'golden age' of cinema was during the 1940s for the British public, but as television grew in popularity during the 1950s cinema audiences declined just as cinema had previously sounded the death knell of the music hall.

Today the Internet is making inroads through sites such a YouTube and in the British Referendum debate the campaigners are using the medium to present the complex issues that will be decided in a months time by a single vote - to go or to stay.

Check out the inormational film - Brexit the Movie.

Is print finally on the way out?

Two different issues over the last few weeks, but both are bad news for print.

The first issue is the demise of the Polestar Group when the last financing arrangement failed and in came the administrators. I suspect the Polestar brand is not well know beyond the print industry. Their web site proclaims, "We realise your Vision" - it goes on to say, "As Europe's largest independent printers fused with a mission to be the leading content delivery company we realise your vision too" - you can read the rest. The Vision Statement thing was essential to any major business that wanted to be taken seriously, but that was perhaps a passing management speak idea back in the 1980s. Actually Polestar was one of our clients for many years, until about 3 years ago. At that time they more modestly claimed to be Europe's largest independent printer. How that has morphed into aiming to become Europe's leading content delivery company is interesting. The funny thing is Polestar used us to deliver their press releases. At the time like many companies their IT department controlled the web site and frequently posting press releases  did not really work for the PR Officer. We presented our Virtual News Office and the deal was done. At that time the situation was reversed - they developed the content, we delivered it. Polestar seems to have an equally intriguing past, older readers may recall Robert Maxwell's various  print groups which were the prequel to Polestar before the name was changed and no doubt provided rich content for its own printing presses to deliver. The company seemed to be positioned at the industrial end of the market, investing heavily in new plant and a fabulous new print factory in Sheffield. The press releases we delivered painted an optimistic future for print.  But in an over capacity industry where price deflation has seen other players drop out, maybe the maths didn't work for the bold investment hopes.

The second comment is the rise of the electronic book and in particular the Kindle. Not long ago we travelled with 30 Kg of luggage or more and packing a few paper backs to read along the way was easily accommodated. But low cost fares and high cost baggage conveyance changed the whole packing philosophy. With just a modest carry-on case, volume is now a big issue, particularly when you think about all the electric kit and collection of cables and chargers needed to support them that has to go along too. A few chunky best sellers just don't make it to the packed suitcase anymore. And who wants to carry around a read book? Once completed they are just consumers of space and weight. The Kindle consumes very little space, although as a long time Apple user, the page turning can be confusing, it is great for travelling. And it solves another problem. What to do with read books? The bookcase is no longer the show place it was to demonstrate to guests you could read, even the charity stores are choosy about the books you give them. So the book in its printed form is on the skids too.

It may just be that the crafters of mission statements embodying ambitions to become leaders in content delivery have got it the wrong way round. It is the content that enjoys the value.

New generation of entrepreneurs optimistic for UK business

Entrepreneur in Saigon

A recent survey revealed that 80 per cent of new entrepreneurial start ups are optimistic about the future for small businesses in the  UK.

What's more, 90% rate Britain a good place to start a new business and are confident about the future unfazed by the possibility of a British exit from the EU. Interestingly, comments made on this report see the EU as more relevant to big business than to small business.

Lets face it big business seems to have been associated with more innovative accountancy than innovative products. The bad press generated by huge global brands in large scale tax avoidance is rightly condemned by SMEs who pay their corporation tax. The EU seems a natural partner for big business, big organised labour and big government. Not only is the EU's  tariff block an outdated concept, but a business model that serves to isolate member states from the world outside. A world  that has already left the failing EU model trailing behind. While big business is happy for the EU to create barriers to protect a bunch of near bankrupt nations, SMEs and startups are saddled with the increasing burden of EU generated legislation. and costs.

So why do SMEs not do more business in the EU? As a small enterprise we had several clients for our marketing services in Europe. Why the past tense? Put simply, for us trading with the EU was just not worth the trouble. We have now pulled out of dealing with EU  clients. When it comes to the referendum vote, it is the individual citizens who will have a say and 5.2 million of them are small business owners.

A view from within the EU

The British referendum is not a day-to-day topic of conversation here in EU land. So far the only comments have been from the British ex pat community online news feeds and that mainly a concern about their residential status should Britain vote to quit.

In this outpost of the EU empire there are sizeable populations of British, German and Italian residents. To some degree the British and more recent arrivals, the Italians, have favoured the northern parts of this Spanish island territory while the Germans have opted for the south. No problems with beach towels reserving sun loungers here then. The British newspapers are essentially the same as in the UK, while the BBC  online news assumes a more global scope. As far as the media goes the main interest of residents is how to get British TV for free. Various entrepreneurs have created a niche business in supplying 'electronic boxes' that they claim offers access to a vast range of content. It is a subject that has concerned many residents going by the chat, including occasional references to a character known as 'Dodgy Dave'. Of course you can sit in a sports bar as we did surrounded by tattoo inked fellow countrymen, to watch the disappointing exit of Watford from the FA cup.


Marketing here is largely 'word of mouth', via printed news sheets and online. The news magazines opt for a few stories re told in several languages and with a high content of display advertising.
'The Daily News' modestly claims to be the 'Island's biggest English language newspaper online'. Today's lead story says it all - 'German couple drown off the west coast.'