Kay Barnard

The European Union is not someone else's project. Whether the E.U. works well or badly, it affects you in more ways than you probably realise. The achievements of peace, increasing prosperity and the spread of democracy across Europe have been extraordinary and should not be forgotten.

However, this century will see new and important challenges. The Liberal Democrats want the European Union to focus on the important challenges in an increasingly unstable world. These include climate change, economic inequality and internal security of energy supplies and food. Here in the South West, the E.U. has helped in areas where people have low incomes, like Cornwall and South Bristol. Liberal Democrat councils across the area have been very successful in attracting E.U. funding, for example to provide grants to businesses and for regeneration projects.