UPDATED: Everything the EU Is Hiding Until After the Referendum

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By Kieran Corcoran | 3:22 am, June 21, 2016
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UPDATE 21st June: Eager Heat Street readers have been alerting us to more hidden surprises. So, two days before polls open, here’s an updated list:

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The Brexit debate has been full of dishonesty – not least that of EU officials, and our own, who have been quietly shelving controversial plans until just after the vote.

Here’s a selection of what’s in store if we vote to stay. There could be more – but this is what a series of slips, gaffes and whistleblowing has outed so far:

A Euro Tax ID For Everyone

Last month the European Parliament’s Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee gave the green light to create a new European Tax Identification Number for every adult in the bloc.

According to the committee, the new layer of bureaucracy will help “effective exchange of information” between member countries.

It will also give them a working database of 500 million taxpayers, and eliminate any practical objections to levying EU-wide taxes on workers.

Fresh Plans for an EU Army

A secret paper on “foreign and security policy”, which pushes to expand the EU’s defence capability, is being kept under wraps until June 24 – the day after Britain decides.

Diplomats can read them but are banned from making copies.

The Times was passed hand-written notes on the plans, which envision a major cash injection for EU defence, and its own headquarters.

Scheme to Hand Out 1million UK Visas to Turks

Turkish accession to the EU has become a flashpoint in the referendum, bringing with it the prospect of even more mass migration to the UK.

David Cameron – who once promised to “pave the road from Ankara to Brussels” – now insists it won’t join the bloc until the year 3000.

But this weekend The Sunday Times revealed there is no need for Turkey to join the EU to trigger mass migration.

Under a scheme floated by British diplomats, the UK Government could hand out some 1,500,000 visas as part of a sweetheart deal to thank Turkey for holding back refugees from crossing into Greece.

Compulsory European Programming on Netflix

EU culture authorities have made plans to force on-demand video providers like Netflix and Amazon to carry at least 20% European-produced content.

The figure is meant to bring the companies in line with heavily-regulated national broadcasters. The rules have been published but need to be rubber-stamped by MEPs before they come into effect.

Even though on-demand providers can’t force anybody to watch anything, the rules suggest making it compulsory to place Euro-content on home pages to make sure it gets watched.

Ruling on Muzzling British Anti-Terror Police

The European Court of Justice has been sitting on a ruling on the so-called Snooper’s Charter, which could hobble plans to give police more powers.

Danish judge Claus Christian Gulmann was due to give a ruling in April, but kicked his decision back until July – just a few weeks after the vote.

A decision to curb the UK powers could have given extra ammo to the Leave campaign’s argument that strict EU laws stop Britain fighting terror properly.

Demands for Even More Cash

Proposals for the EU’s 2017 budget were due in late May, but have been suspiciously punted back a month.

Inevitably, the plan will be to spend even more of member states’ public money.

According to The Times, cash has been earmarked for dealing with the migrant crisis, upgrading Brussels buildings and funding regional projects.

Banning Kettles and Hairdryers

The European Commission’s “Ecodesign Directive” demands that electrical appliances use less energy, in a bid to make Europe more green.

In their sights are kettles and hairdryers, which could be made much less effective in order to fulfill requirements – in the way that high-powered light bulbs have already been phased out.

According to the Daily Mirror, EU bureaucrats decided to kick back the plans to avoid a backlash from Britons, who are especially loathe to have their kettles meddled with.

Hiking VAT on Food, Medicine and Kids’ Clothes

This January the EU’s economics commissioner announced a review of VAT across Europe.

EU rules say that member states must charge at least 5% on everything – a rule which conflicts with UK policy to charge no VAT on essentials like food, medicine and children’s clothing.

According to Reuters, Pierre Moscovici demurred when the conflict was pointed out to him. Obviously aware of the impending vote, he said it was “too early” for a decision.

Kicking Us Off International Organizations

The EU’s Five Presidents’ Report, the blueprint for the next round of European integration, contains dark hints about removing the UK from international bodies and subsuming them into a common EU representative.

This already happens in organisations like the World Trade Organization, the fisheries commission that governs the North Sea, and any bodies set up to make EU trade deals.

But the EU report pointed out that areas where member states still represent themselves – like the IMF – leave the union with a “fragmented voice” and “should be increasingly unified”.

The intentions behind the observation are vague, but point to an ambition to stop countries like the UK putting their own interest ahead of Europe.

Suffocating London’s Art Market

Another European Commission plan is to slap extra licensing laws on art dealers.

London art dealers warned that the extra burden would lose them masses of business to other major cities like New York and Geneva, which wouldn’t have to bother.

As London counts for more than half of the EU’s entire art market, the law would only really have a significant impact on the UK.

Have we missed anything big? Email kieran.corcoran@dowjones.com to suggest more

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