Hilmar Veigar warns EU membership would be irreversible

Hilmar Veigar Pétursson, head of Fenris Creations, formerly CCP, has changed his view on Iceland joining the European Union and now says the country would not be able to reverse course after joining, mbl.is reports.

Pétursson had previously strongly supported continuing Iceland’s EU accession negotiations and adopting the euro instead of the Icelandic króna. He discussed his change of position in an interview on the Spursmál programme.

He spoke last week at an event organised by Áfram Ísland, where the focus was on Icelandic innovation companies and the opportunities available to them inside and outside the EU. The speech attracted considerable attention because of his earlier position.

Pétursson moved to Britain around the time Brexit had recently been completed. He says his experience there showed him that if Iceland joined the EU, it would never be able to leave again.

He also says that “looking into the package” would draw attention away from urgent issues in Icelandic society and prevent the nation from seizing exceptional opportunities, particularly in the intellectual property industry.

The interview is available on mbl.is and on Spotify and YouTube.