David Cameron answers Echo readers' Brexit questions

The prime minister has staked his political credibility on the vote, which takes place on June 23 after he renegotiated the terms of Britain’s membership.

The Daily Echo put a selection of your questions to the Conservative leader.

Is it true we give £350million a week to Europe? Why don’t we spend it on the NHS?

No, it’s not true. The £350m a week figure being used by the Leave campaign is incorrect. Independent experts say that it doesn’t take into account the rebate – the money given back automatically by the EU – and it doesn’t include money we get back for public services, farming, other industries and funding for universities for example. The truth is that for every £1 paid in tax, just over 1p goes to the EU.

So we make a contribution, but the critical point is that we get an awful lot back too. In the EU we have access to a single market of 500 million people and keep a say over the rules of doing business across Europe. That helps our economy to grow, and generate the tax revenues to pay for the NHS. If we left, the damage done to our economy would mean there’d be less money to pay for vital public services like the NHS, not more.

If we stay in the EU will we be able to control migration from Turkey?

Turkey is not in the EU and there is no realistic prospect of them joining any time soon. Critically, Britain has a veto on whether any country can join, and even if we decide they can, we can decide the terms on which they can join. This is just a scare story put about by the Leave campaign.

The real issue on migration that people need to consider is this: any country outside the EU that wants significant access to the Single Market has to pay into the EU and accept the free movement of people from the EU. If you want a different arrangement, you’d have to leave the Single Market, and that will cause severe economic damage to businesses and families all across Britain – leaving us permanently poorer to the tune of £4,300 for every household in the country.

We can make real progress on migration within the EU. I’ve secured changes that mean new arrivals from the EU will not be able to get full access to benefits for four years. That is an important change that will have a real impact on numbers – without recklessly risking our economic security and future prosperity.

If the situation were different and we were debating the reasons for the UK to JOIN the EU, would you and why?

If we were offered the British terms we have today, combined with my renegotiation – out of the euro, out of ‘no borders’, but in the single market with the ability to restrict welfare to people coming to the UK – then yes I would.

I don’t think the EU is perfect and our job of reforming it certainly doesn’t end here. But being in the EU delivers economic security for our people, a place at the top table for Britain to get things done in the world, and safety in numbers so we can keep the British people safe here at home. If we weren’t in the EU, we’d be weaker, poorer and less secure – and many people in Britain would want to join, just as other countries who sit outside do.

If the Prime Minister thinks leaving the EU would lead to world war three and economic doom, why did he promise a referendum?

I think it’s right that the people should have their say on Europe for the first time in 40 years. We shouldn’t be frightened of having the argument. But it’s right that, as we consider the choice before us, we point out that leaving carries real and serious risks.

I can tell you what ‘in’ looks like, now and into the future. We’ll be in that single market, and our economy – which is forecast to grow more strongly this year than many of our competitors – will continue to thrive. We’ll be a strong power in our own backyard, with real clout on the world stage so we can get things done. And we’ll have strength in numbers at a time of real danger and instability.

I do also think it’s worth remembering that we’re part of continent that had spent the best part of 1,000 years at war with each other. The EU has helped enormously in bringing about peace and stability. I did not predict World War III but I did say that, today, countries sit down and talk; we don’t fight each other. That isn’t something we should ever be complacent about.

Is it true that British MEPs have voted 72 times against proposed legislation and succeeded not once? How is that acceptable to our democratically elected government?

Again, this is a statistic that has been twisted out of all recognition. It refers to votes in the Council of Ministers, but ignores the fact that we are on the winning side of around 90 per cent of votes.

Of course we don’t always get our own way – that’s not the way that organisations with 28 members work. But the idea that Britain is a weak country that gets bossed about and ganged up on in Europe? That is defeatist nonsense. We’re a strong country, we fight hard for the British interest in Brussels and we get our way more often than not. Indeed, the ‘single market’ was a British idea and a British win for our interests as a trading nation in Europe.

Not enough unbiased information has been given regarding the vote – so will you tell us what the positives might be of leaving the EU, and why they aren’t enough of a reason to vote leave?

On the contrary, there is an awful lot of independent information out there telling us we should not be leaving the EU and that to do so would put our economic security and our national security at risk. I struggle to see any positives for leaving – I think the arguments of the Leave campaign are actually being demolished issue by issue.

World-leading organisations such as the IMF, the Bank of England, the London School of Economics and the OECD have said leaving would hurt our economy. The National Farmers’ Union and Trade Union Congress, who between them represent hardworking people in Dorset and beyond, have said we shouldn’t be leaving.

And don’t forget: remaining in the EU has cross-party support: Labour, the Lib Dems, the Greens, SNP and others from across the political spectrum – all have considered the evidence and come to the conclusion that leaving the EU would be the wrong decision for Britain.

What do you think are the three biggest achievements of the EU over the last 15 years?

Firstly, the creation of the Single Market – a market that Britain argued for and helped to build. Being a part of it means the businesses and industries that employ people here in Dorset have access to 500 million consumers – all without impediment or tariff. That is a huge achievement.

Recent developments in security cooperation have been very important. The EU allows us to work closely with other countries to fight cross-border crime and terrorism, giving us strength in numbers in a dangerous world. If we left, we’d be less safe because we’d be less able to have this vital security cooperation.

And thirdly, the EU has brought many consumer benefits for people in the UK – for example, the cheap air travel that has been available in the last 15 to 20 years that has enabled families to fly to so many more destinations. Today, Bournemouth Airport runs flights to many great destinations across Europe at low prices. That’s a real, tangible benefit that people get from being in the EU.

A lot of the advocates for staying in are the same people who advocated joining the euro – so why should we believe them?

Well, I didn’t – I always stood firm against Britain joining the euro. William Hague led the campaign against the euro, but he thinks it is right to stay in the reformed Europe we have delivered. On the question of our membership of the EU itself, the independent evidence out there from the IMF, the Bank of England, the London School of Economics and the OECD is clear: leaving would put our economic security at risk. More often than not, the prevailing wisdom is right – and the balance of opinion on this question is absolutely overwhelming.

Do you think there’s a danger of people voting for or against the personalities of each campaign rather than the issues – and what would you say to those people?

I think the British people are far too wise to vote on a question like this on the basis of personality. People know that this isn’t like a General Election when you can have another go in five years’ time. This is permanent – and so it’s far more important. I would urge people in Bournemouth and Dorset to get as much information as they can, and think about what the outcome would mean for them – for their family, their job, their mortgage, the prices in their local supermarket and their ability to travel cheaply and easily in Europe.