As a member of the bloc, Britain has access to Europe’s $19 trillion integrated economy of more than 500 million citizens. To obtain access to that market, Britain currently accepts free movement of workers across European frontiers. Britain also pays into the European Union budget, money that many advocates of withdrawal have argued should be spent at home, particularly on the hard-pressed National Health Service. For the financial sector, a central issue is retaining “passporting” — the right that banks and finance companies based in London currently have to offer services throughout the European Union. “It would be good to get some sense of whether the government wants absolutely no free movement of workers or is willing to accept some free movement; do they want to retain passporting?

Source: International New York Times August 31, 2016 14:01 UTC