David Cameron exclusively for The Tab: Why you should vote to remain in the EU

This Tuesday is your last chance to register to vote on whether we should stay in the EU. Today Prime Minister David Cameron writes exclusively for The Tab, telling Tab readers why they should vote to remain. This is what he has to say: 

June 23 is a big day for Britain, and the outcome will affect young people more than anyone else. Why? Because staying in or leaving the European Union is a once-in-a-generation decision – and it’s your generation that will have to live with the consequences.

I know lots of people feel confused: blinded by statistics, bored of the claims and counter-claims. Today I want to cut through the confusion and make the clear case for why Tab readers should vote to remain. But before you read on, make sure you’re registered to vote. You’ve only got until Tuesday to do so.

The case for remaining starts with this thing called the Single Market, where EU countries have come together and formed a marketplace of 500 million people and where we can buy and sell goods for free. It might sound remote, even irrelevant, but it’s one of the reasons our economy is thriving. From farmers to filmmakers, so many Brits sell to Europe. And so many European companies, like EDF, Santander and BMW, have set up shop here as a result.

That means there are more decent jobs for you when you graduate. It makes our economy stronger, prices in the shops lower, and generates more money to spend on public services, like schools and hospitals. As for universities, vice chancellors have said it’s vital we remain in. Then there’s travel. Whether you’re interning in Barcelona or interrailing to Budapest, the EU gives you the chance to visit, study or work in Europe. At home, it makes us safer, enabling us to work more effectively with our neighbours to fight crime and terror.

With all the benefits of our membership – the fact that we’re stronger, safer and better off – you’d think the people who want us to leave have something pretty good to offer. They don’t. They’re just winging it, saying we could be like Canada or Norway or even Albania, but not giving us any concrete plan. One thing is certain, though: they want to chuck away the access we have to this Single Market. And that would wreck our economy for the next generation.

Some of them admit that there’d be a shock to Britain’s economy if we quit the EU. Nine in ten economists back this up. In fact, the Bank of England and the IMF have said that there’d probably be a recession. And we know who bears the brunt of recession: the young. When jobs are cut, it’s last in, first out. When interest rates rise, it’s new homeowners who face repossessions. When prices go up, it’s students and those on low salaries who suffer most.

I believe we should be opening up opportunities for young people, not putting up obstacles. Leaving the EU is the ultimate barrier – a roadblock to your future, standing between you and your dreams. Don’t let other voters decide this for you. Register today. Vote on the 23^rd. And make the most of everything you’ll get from staying in a reformed Europe.

Sign up to write for The Tab here.