greater degree of worker representation at management level . If this all sounds appealing then you can work there because there is no need for EU citizens ( which we are at present ) to obtain a work permit to work in Norway .
Norway benefits from being part of the EU ’ s single market but , as David Cameron has acknowledged , they have no say in setting the EU ’ s rules . You have to be in the club to have a say in how it operates . Norway simply has to implement directives from Brussels ( though recent reports suggest they have been lax in doing so in many areas ). David Cameron wants to stay in the EU to influence its decisions , but without having all the rules applied to the UK . He does not advocate copying Norway , but it is not attractive for Eurosceptics either as it offers no escape from the perceived bureaucratic vice grip of the union .
Do we have the clout to get better terms than the Swiss ?
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The Swiss have a different solution . They are not members of the EEA . Instead they negotiate access to the EU on a sector by sector basis . They have chosen to accept the rules that apply to that sector or not play that particular game . Since the decision not to join the EU in 1992 Switzerland has entered into more than 100 agreements with the EU . An example of one of these sectors is with regard to food industry products so they are largely no longer subject to tariffs and export subsidies .
However , Switzerland has not entered into a bilateral sector agreement about financial services . This means the two big banks , UBS and Credit Suisse , can only participate in the EU market via their EU-based subsidiaries . The smaller banks of the Swiss cantons cannot and do not want to enter the EU market . One suspects that this is because they do not want to give up the secrecy they and their customers enjoy within Switzerland . Switzerland has signed up to the free movement of persons and since 2008 they have become one of the Schengen group of countries which eliminates systematic control of cross-border traffic . The UK has never even hinted at being part of Schengen because of its concerns over border security . That is not to say the Swiss are not concerned . In 2009 Switzerland held a referendum about opening its labour market to Bulgarians and Romanians , a major concern of Eurosceptics in the UK . The referendum was a close run thing but the Swiss voted in favour of freeing up the market . If it had not then many of the bilateral agreements would have been suspended .
The relative freedom that the Swiss enjoy does seem to be the better solution for Eurosceptics than the halfway house that Norway inhabits . So , do they want to be like Switzerland ? There is an obvious temptation , but the overall level of regulation is much greater than that in the UK so this does not fit the Eurosceptic desires on that front . If we chose to go down the Swiss route we would in theory have more freedom over employment legislation , although we might find the sector agreements just as restrictive .
Do we have the clout to get better terms than the Swiss ? They have a much stronger economy but in order to maintain it Switzerland realises it needs to concede some ground to the EU , especially in the labour market . When voting on EU membership in 1992 there was a concern that the borders would be opened up to foreign workers . The amount of foreigners in Switzerland at the time was 20 %. Currently 25 % of the population in Switzerland is foreign even though the country voted against joining the EU . The subsequent bilateral agreements opened up the borders to EU citizens in any event . Those agreements were required in order for the Swiss to maintain market access to the EU .
Future relations are uncertain and the EU has informed Switzerland that further bilateral agreements may not be possible and some negotiations for those under consideration have stalled . The EU is pressing for the Swiss to automatically adopt EU Directives in a manner akin to Norway but public opinion indicates that joining the EEA is not an option to be seriously considered .