Skúli Mogensen rejects Iceland joining EU and adopting euro

Businessman Skúli Mogensen has rejected Iceland joining the European Union and adopting the euro, saying the country’s current problems would not be solved automatically by membership, mbl.is reports.

In a Facebook post published yesterday, Mogensen clearly set out his opposition to EU membership, opening with the words: “I say no.”

He said Iceland currently compares very favourably internationally. In his view, the country is among the OECD’s wealthiest and most income-equal societies, with high labour-force participation, generally low unemployment, substantial social mobility and widespread home ownership.

Mogensen warned against viewing EU membership as a guaranteed route to stability. He pointed to problems facing several member states, including a decline in jobs in German industry, high youth unemployment in Spain and controversial changes to the retirement age in France. He said these examples showed that neither the euro nor EU membership guaranteed job security or unchanged living standards.

He also highlighted Iceland’s future advantages, including large and sustainable fisheries resources, renewable energy and what he described as one of the world’s strongest pension systems. He said these strengths gave Iceland a solid position at a time when Western countries were dealing with ageing populations and population decline.

Mogensen said domestic issues, particularly worsening results in basic education, posed a more serious challenge to the country’s future than the question of EU membership. He added that the problems Iceland faces, including rising inflation and housing difficulties, would not resolve themselves through joining the union.

He ended by urging Icelanders to stand together and reject membership rather than “sacrifice independence” because of temporary difficulties.