Fri 13 May 2016 / Europe
Lessons of 1776
George Osborne, the UK chancellor of the exchequer, has claimed as a 'fact' that British departure from the EU would cost British families precisely £4,300 each by 2030. Osborne is wrong. There are no facts about the future, just good or bad forecasts. His are based on extremely debatable methodology. In a few years, long after the flawed Treasury report has faded from memory, no one will claim that the UK would have been more prosperous by staying in the EU.