Alright, so what's GOOD about the EU?
I'll play devil's advocate just to keep things antagonistic
( Grrrmachine the indifference engine, Wed 6 Jul 2016, 7:27, 25 replies)

Easier to keep a lid on the Nazis.

( drimble he'd been white, he'd been black, Wed 6 Jul 2016, 7:30, closed)

once they pop, you can't stop

( Grrrmachine the indifference engine, Wed 6 Jul 2016, 9:27, closed)

fit birds

( $$ ✅, Wed 6 Jul 2016, 8:33, closed)

fit birds in Norway too, they aren't in the EU

( Grrrmachine the indifference engine, Wed 6 Jul 2016, 9:28, closed)

The EHCR.
The Working Time Directive.
Probably the ECJ, too, although I'm sure you can tell me how corrupt it is.
Pissing off Eurosceptic Tories.

I'll probably miss that last one, more than anything, but I expect the EU will have plenty to annoy then with whilst we negotiate our Brexit.
( monster munch person, man, woman... camera... TV?, Wed 6 Jul 2016, 11:26, closed)

'member the good old days when infighting about the EU made them unelectable?

( tangledupinblue hairy badge with moving eyes, Wed 6 Jul 2016, 11:32, closed)

And now Labour infighting makes them unelectable.

( monster munch person, man, woman... camera... TV?, Wed 6 Jul 2016, 11:35, closed)

ECHR isn't part of the EU
Working Time Directive is easily bypassed by using zero-hours or junk contracts, or forcing people to set up their own companies to invoice them directly, or any other PAYE bullshit
ECJ is fair enough
( Grrrmachine the indifference engine, Wed 6 Jul 2016, 11:45, closed)

Counting this as a win.

( monster munch person, man, woman... camera... TV?, Wed 6 Jul 2016, 14:45, closed)

eggs

( The Doveston haunted by the memory of his own amnesia, Wed 6 Jul 2016, 13:08, closed)

well yeah cos if we're out of the EU I can buy proper ones from jon down the road
rather than the rubbish box of six in the corner shop
( Grrrmachine the indifference engine, Wed 6 Jul 2016, 14:07, closed)

Science funding
ESPRC funds more PhDs and its pan-euro nature makes it easier for research and collaboration.

Also as a chemist REACH helps control and reduce hazardous chemical use. Useful if you work with stuff that can do a full on raiders of the lost ark on your face, like I do.
( willenium Fist bump for verification, Wed 6 Jul 2016, 19:10, closed)

When it comes to any form of direct cash payment such as funding or regional development
the fact that the UK pays in more to the EU than it gets back means it's a moot point. Of course, leaving the EU means expecting funding from the Tories rather than Brussels, but that just means you have to vote responsibly in the next election.

The REACH issue means that you think eurocrats overseas care more about the health and safety of UK workers than the UK agencies responsible do, which is almost ludicrous considering how the UK leads Europe in "injured at work?" court cases.
( Grrrmachine the indifference engine, Wed 6 Jul 2016, 19:56, closed)

The point regarding research is not so much to do with monetary investment but the opportunities for international collaborative activity.
If you do want it to be about money though, it was one of the areas where the UK did do disproportionately well.

Regarding health and safety, how does the UK leading on court cases prove your point? Maybe it just points towards a problem with litigious culture or our workforce being made up of clumsy idiots.
( Pig Bodine., Thu 7 Jul 2016, 13:41, closed)

my point about court cases is that corporations already have an incentive
to implement extremely stringent quality controls and workplace safety, because UK's litigation culture makes them much more susceptible to massive payouts for worker injuries compared to other places in the EU.

I don't know enough about your field to discuss international co-operation, but knowing that tools like Thompson Reuters' Web of Knowledge exist means that there other incentives for international collaboration outside the established EU frameworks.
( Grrrmachine the indifference engine, Thu 7 Jul 2016, 14:23, closed)

HA! Fat lot of good the EU has done science. We have FEMALE GHOSTBUSTERS now for christ's sake.

( 2 Can Chunder Word to your mums, I came to prod bums, Thu 7 Jul 2016, 18:02, closed)

As well as bring peace...
...there's the sanitation, the medicine, education, wine, public order, irrigation, roads, the fresh-water system, and public health.
(Tugnut Ex of this parish, Thu 7 Jul 2016, 13:37, closed)

monty python quotes are for sixth formers
grow up
( Grrrmachine the indifference engine, Thu 7 Jul 2016, 14:24, closed)

I am 17 and what is this

( drimble he'd been white, he'd been black, Thu 7 Jul 2016, 21:44, closed)

I do feel like spitting image now
I just got a condescending letter from Lord Tebbit in reply to my email about science funding.
( willenium Fist bump for verification, Fri 8 Jul 2016, 16:35, closed)