On Mon, 18 Jul 2016 07:57:02 -0000 (UTC), Recliner wrote:

Optimist wrote:
On Mon, 18 Jul 2016 08:23:19 +0100, Roland Perry wrote:

In message , at 17:57:23 on
Sun, 17 Jul 2016, Optimist remarked:

Countries outside the "single market" sell into it all the time.

Of course they do, but have to deal with tariffs and quotas.

Unless they sign a free trade agreement. The EU has FTAs with many
countries which do not involve
adhering to the EU's single market rules.

But that trade involves a lot more paperwork than trade within the single
market. So, although there aren't tariffs, the trade isn't frictionless.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-36083664

That would affect EU states more than the UK, as we import more from EU than we export.

Another advantage of being outside the EU is that we no longer have to apply tariffs against non-EU
imports, hence so many countries are keen to get FTAs with the UK.

I view the single market as being like a lavatory. We need access to it, but not to be locked into
it.