I'm not saying you're wrong Andy but I can't ever remember decimalisation being mentioned as a prerequisite to EEC membership. I must admit as someone doing maths and sciences at the time use of the metric system and currency decimalisation seemed a no-brainer, and when I entered the world of commercial IT (or computing as we called it then!) I could see the advantages - I suspect the introduction of computers was a bigger reason for decimalisation, not essential but the ease of it probably had big intangible cost savings (for example, a lot easier to export or import software if everyone is using decimalised currencies).Of course, from what I remember, the UK's entry and assimilation into the EEC then the EU was more gradual than its departure - the UK helped develop and evolve many EU rules including freedom of movement. I seem to remember as early as the late 70s it was a lot easier doing business with EEC and EFTA countries than earlier in the decade. You may not be guilty of this but Johnson et al have tried to "sell" Brexit as a done deal. It has been a sudden stop in some areas (export rule to the EU, musicians touring, scientific exchanges, travel rules, pet passports) which are very damaging to both individuals and some businesses. In some cases, such as musicians visas that was completely unnecessary, and seems either spite for the arts and entertainment industry, or complete incompetence (possibly both). Somethings will get resolved but probably too late for some, and the UK will probably have less flexibility than it images in changing some laws. If we want to provide services to the EU, then we can't deviate to far from the GDPR or MiFID. In practice data protection derives originally from the ECHR (an additional protocol), and some countries see the GDPR as a good model if they want to do business with the EU. I suspect that over the next 50 years the importance of the convenience of doing business with our closest neighbours and being part of a large trading group will seem to be attractive and make sense ... I suspect the UK will become more of a rule taker than maker as it does business around the globe; to be honest, I hope I'm proved wrong.Stating facts is not "whining"; neither is pointing out lies and incompetence.It would be better if Brexiters provided their solutions to the problems such as Northern Ireland, etc rather than accused Remainers of whining. Please, go ahead.
Michael Ixer ● 1100d