Should the UK rejoin the EU?

"If the population number remained stable there wouldn't be a need to build all these new homes"
Yes there would, because there is a current shortage of decent, affordable housing.
"I have no problems with immigrants themselves but we can't have the whole world living on this small island."
That's quite the non-sequitur.
"We'd be going there instead if that was the case."
Generally, British people are possibly the world's greatest monoglots. That can be a major barrier to relocation.

No, population number 'remaining stable' would be absolutely terrible for the economy. Do you realise that the UK is one of the most aging populations in the world? If the population were to remain stable, the rate at which our young workforce would decrease would be amplified hugely. By 2043, over 17 million people in the UK will be over 65 (that's one quarter). If we stop allowing immigrants in (with over 70% of them being under 30, and 90% under 45), then major sectors such as care, construction and nursing will completely deteriorate, and there will be no-one to take care of our old people, only putting more strain on the NHS and public funding - which will take money away from housing. Over 35% of people taking care of our old people are from abroad.
'Have the whole world living on our small island' What does that even mean? You can't just hear and parrot around useless phrases because you have no idea what they mean.
No, because as @2WheelGod said, the British population are extremely resistant to moving abroad.

Understand what?
I remain puzzled as to what it is that you think I don't understand. I am, however, readily able to discern when someone is being disingenuous and - if I may borrow a phrase from another recent post - when someone is "belligerent and unwilling to listen to the views of others".
If you read my posts carefully, and interpret them correctly, you will see that I am arguing in favour of a closer trading relationship with EU countries similar (but not identical) to that advocated by a group of MPs in 2019, which included Stephen Kinnock, a minister in the current Labour Government. This relationship was summed up thus: "...stepping out of the EU political integration project and towards the popular and fruitful common market relationship that the UK enjoyed with Europe in the 1970s and 1980s."
It is possible that you genuinely do not recognise how the EU has changed over the years, and the impact that has had on attitudes to the European project.
In reality, we will not be rejoining the EU in the foreseeable future, so our debate here is purely academic. There is, therefore, no need for belligerence or acrimony.

There is a current shortage because of the increase in population driving demand. Far too many homes get built in my opinion, I can think of numerous housing estates that used to be countryside. Unfortunately the damage has been done. We should have never let the population grow the way it's done. I have no desire whatsoever to move abroad, I was born in the UK and lived here all my life and am as British as they come. Why would I want to move abroad?
Absolute nonsense. There is only a finite amount of space in this country and if we weren't so overpopulated there wouldn't be a need for these extra people to do these jobs. I refuse to believe we need immigration to keep the country going, it just suggests us Brits are useless. You also need to question why we have an aging population not being replaced by young people. At the same time many young people are not having children because they can't afford to.

This thread is brilliant - it's like travelling back in TSR time! Is that bloke who used to wang on about Islam going to make an appearance?

If the population stopped growing today, there would still be a shortage of affordable housing. The proportion of affordable housing has fallen over the last decade.
"I as British as they come. Why would I want to move abroad?"
Ironically, the country was built on British people wanting to move abroad.
A sense of adventure and exploration is at the heart of "Britishness", not an insular reluctance to see beyond one's own narrow experience.

I explained it in my original post, with the help of an obvious analogy.
You claimed that people who favour rejoining think that "all is well" in the EU. That is clearly untrue and merely a convenient straw man.
Nothing more to say really.

There is a current shortage because of the increase in population driving demand. Far too many homes get built in my opinion, I can think of numerous housing estates that used to be countryside. Unfortunately the damage has been done. We should have never let the population grow the way it's done. I have no desire whatsoever to move abroad, I was born in the UK and lived here all my life and am as British as they come. Why would I want to move abroad?
Absolute nonsense. There is only a finite amount of space in this country and if we weren't so overpopulated there wouldn't be a need for these extra people to do these jobs. I refuse to believe we need immigration to keep the country going, it just suggests us Brits are useless. You also need to question why we have an aging population not being replaced by young people. At the same time many young people are not having children because they can't afford to.

One thing I've learned about myself over the years is that I have zero interest in other cultures. I like to go to the pub and have a pint of real ale. I eat fish and chips on a Friday and a roast on Sunday. I've never been to a tapas bar and don't intend to start.

One thing I've learned about myself over the years is that I have zero interest in other cultures. I like to go to the pub and have a pint of real ale. I eat fish and chips on a Friday and a roast on Sunday. I've never been to a tapas bar and don't intend to start.

Far too many homes do not get built, that is a complete lie. Perhaps you could elaborate, maybe with some evidence rather than your prejudiced opinions? 50% of the construction workforce are migrants, they are the people supplying our country with homes. I didn't suggest you'd want to move abroad...
Yes, there is a finite amount of space, but we have only used 8% of our land. Perhaps this suggests we are not filled to the brim with immigrants, and in fact we need to build more houses.. just a thought. You can't just 'refuse to believe' something just because you want to - when 32% of the care workforce are sent away (Keir Starmer's recent policy),who is going to replace them? We are already extremely short on care workers, so who is going to replace them? Brits? No, as we've already seen, they will not replace them.
You do realise immigrants contribute to the economy? They pay 25 billion in net tax - because they do not receive the same public services, yet pay more tax. So, if we removed them, we'd be losing 25 billion, what would happen next? The government would have to make up for this by increasing tax to fund public services, so what would happen? Ordinary people would have to pay more in tax - thus meaning they can afford to have children even less. Why don't you provide some evidence to prove your points

I don't need evidence, I look with my own eyes. When I was a child I used to play in the field at the top of my street. That field has gone and has been replaced by houses. The reason why so many construction workers are migrants is the fault of Tony Blair who sent would be builders to university to get useless degrees.

This thread is starting to remind me of Gove's famous phrase "I think the people of this country has had enough of experts".

I don't need evidence, I look with my own eyes. When I was a child I used to play in the field at the top of my street. That field has gone and has been replaced by houses. The reason why so many construction workers are migrants is the fault of Tony Blair who sent would be builders to university to get useless degrees.

And you prefaced that analogy with the words: "Hmm, I see you're still struggling with basic concepts." You later used the expressions,"*Sigh*. I'll try to help out again," and "Apologies if it was too taxing". These supercilious remarks revealed your true intent - but let's take your offer of help at face value.
Be assured that I have no need of assistance in understanding the "basic concepts". Having studied Constitutional Law, I suspect that I am at least as qualified to venture an opinion on this subject as you are.
Not everyone would agree with your assertion that the EU is, "a far better proposition than what we currently have, despite its failings", though, of course, you have every right to express that opinion. If you really wanted to be helpful you would elaborate on that and thus enter meaningfully into the debate.

You made a claim that displayed a fundamental lack of understanding of one of the central issues (that those favouring rejoining think that "all is well" in the EU).
Claiming that you have "studied constitutional law" has no bearing on that, whatsoever.
Leaving the EU has caused demonstrable harm to many individuals an businesses. It is difficult to come up with a single, concrete benefit. Maybe taking back control of the shape of our bananas 😉?

It seems to have taken you quite some time to come up with this oblique response, which fails to address the points I raised in the post that you quoted (See Reply 65 and Reply 75).
Having first suggested that I am struggling with "the basic concepts", you belatedly switch to "one of the central issues". Basic concepts and central issues are two very different terms, with very different connotations.
In any discussion on the EU, basic concepts would include, for example: economic and monetary union, the principle of subsidiarity, the division of competences, qualified majority voting and such like.
For the purpose of this thread, the central issues revolve around the question of whether or not it is either feasible or desirable for the UK to rejoin an organisation that it left only a few years ago. Against that backdrop, it makes perfect sense to remind those taking part in the debate that the EU has many deep-seated problems that are only likely to worsen as it expands to absorb more states that are economically weak and politically unstable.
It could be argued that it displays a "fundamental lack of understanding" (if I may borrow your phrase) to concentrate solely on the short to medium term impact of the UK's exit while ignoring the profound political and constitutional issues involved. As Paul Johnson, the outgoing Director of the IFS said yesterday, there is a "perfectly good case for Brexit" if you look beyond a narrowly economic perspective. And from that perspective - as I have emphasised in this thread - there is a very strong case for building close ties with our European trading partners without necessarily needing to rejoin the European Union in its current guise.
As I said in Reply 29, it may or may not have been wise to decide to leave the EU in 2016 - but we did. Rejoining an organisation that is far from ideal in so many respects without considering the disadvantages is another matter altogether.
You have expressed the view that the EU is "a far better proposition than what we currently have, despite its failings".
That is a perfectly valid opinion, albeit that you appear to have convinced yourself that it is a fact. I invited you to elaborate on that view. But so far you seem unwilling or unable to do so.

"I don't need evidence"
Sadly, this is the mantra of too many people today.
And look where it's got us.
"I look with my own eyes."
There is a whole world beyond what you can see around you.
(But then, you've already admitted that you have no interest in it)
Also, you can't see everything that is there.
"When I was a child I used to play in the field at the top of my street. That field has gone and has been replaced by houses."
All the fields around my childhood home are still fields, thus disproving your claim. 😉
"sent would be builders to university to get useless degrees"
If that degree resulted in a job with better pay, conditions and prospects, then it wasn't useless.
If it was useless, then they would be unemployed and available to take the vacant construction jobs.
Basic logic, my friend.

Alright, well I look with my own eyes. I saw a Bugatti on my street, does that mean everyone is now extremely rich? It was raining today, does that mean climate change is not real? I saw rubbish on the street, does that mean the entire infrastructure of the UK is destroyed?
A builder makes on average 30,000 a year, a doctor 80,000, architect 60,000, a lawyer 90,000, an investment banker 100,000. Which of these jobs require degrees? Of course, all of them, except a builder. Why would people knowingly get a degree when they could become a builder without one? Or, once they get a degree, why wouldn't they choose to become a builder if it's such a good job like you say? Maybe it's because they don't want to be a builder, because you have poor working conditions, low salary and it's extremely hard work, and relatively unfulfilling

Oh dear. A couple of things.
1 - I don't spend my time poised by my computer, eagerly awaiting your responses so I can reply quickly enough to avoid any suspicion of incompetence (ikr, who'da thunk?)
2 - In a discussion about people supporting rejoining the EU, mistakenly thinking that they all think "all is well in the EU" is both a central issue and a basic concept.
3 - The overwhelming consensus amongst businesses and economists is that Brexit has caused harm to the economy. As individuals, we have lost many benefits without any apparent gains.
Ironically, you seem unwilling or unable to come up with any business, economic or personal gains arising from Brexit (although this is hardly surprising as even the biggest Leave cheerleaders are struggled with this).
"it makes perfect sense to remind those taking part in the debate that the EU has problems"
And we are all hugely grateful for you reminding us. We would never have known otherwise.
😂