The Balance Must Balance

Abstract

Having had endless trouble with balance of payment deficits ever since the war, it is no wonder that the British public is ready and eager to listen to any proposals which are claimed to provide a solution of that problem. I have often wondered what proportion of those in Britain who are in favour of joining the Common Market are in favour of it because they have been persuaded, or have succeeded in persuading themselves, that once we are inside the EEC our balance of payments worries would become a matter of the past. British industries would have at their disposal a large area in which, they assume, it would be as easy to sell as in the domestic markets. Although the EEC, even in its enlarged form, is not expected to be self-supporting, its member countries (including Britain) would depend on their exports to countries outside their common customs territory to a much smaller degree.