MEP takes Euro campaign to streets of Winchester

The MEP promoted jobs in Hampshire across the south-east as part of an ongoing campaign similar to that being backed by prominent entrepreneurs such as Richard Branson and Sir Martin Sorrell.

Mrs Bearder said: “It’s not just me saying this; Richard Branson is saying the same. Jobs, that’s what I’m doing in the EU Parliament and it’s all for the country as a whole.”

Discussing Euro-scepticism within the UK, Mrs Bearder confirmed the general public were “fearful of the EU”. 

“But we only do things that are pertinent to all 28 countries,” she said. “We all love our own country. We all spend our time defending it.

“Together we create the world’s largest market and it’s vital that the UK is a part of that. We need to be a part of the EU otherwise big decisions would be made without us.” 

In response to the ongoing matter of the UK’s position within the EU and the possibility that Britain could withdraw Mrs Bearder said: “It would be as sensible as Hampshire leaving the UK. Being together devolves our relationships to the MPs in Westminster and it’s the same in the EU.”

Part of Mrs Bearder’s campaign states that as many as 5,843 jobs in Winchester alone have been generated as a direct result of trade with member states, a fraction of the 3.5 million jobs generated across Britain, according to Professor Iain Begg of London School of Economics. Although Prof Begg conducted his survey back in 2006 campaign officials said he still stands by these figures.

In addition to the funding of the primary sector, such as agriculture and solar energy, campaign officials argued the importance of EU trade for higher education stating that the funding received from the EU was ‘a ridiculous amount’, at a time when direct UK government funding is at its lowest. 

Mrs Bearder continued her travels this afternoon to the Isle of Wight, just one of her constituencies, all of which total 8.5 million voters across 9 counties in the south-east.