"Oh, really? Take a look at Polish GDP growth before Poland entered the EU. You make it sound like it's so simple. The simple fact is that the greatest beneficiary of the EU is Germany because Germany is an export driven market. It needs the free trade zone to sell its products and to access cheap labor in the East on favorable terms. The idea that Germany is the generous benefactor of these countries is absurd. The German economy profits enormously from it. Furthermore, free trade benefits countries who are already rich far more than they benefit those that aren't. The US became an economic power not because of free trade but because of protectionism that shielded its economy from an influx of cheap products from wealthier countries and allowing it to develop (the US is to this day one of the most protectionist countries in the world). The economic power of a country isn't measured by the access consumers have to products. It's measured by its economic base. If Poles have access to every product in the EU at British, French, and German supermarkets while remaining a giant service center for Germany, then it is not a country with a strong economy. It is an annex. It also transfers jobs out of the country which is why resentment against the EU is seen across Europe. The EU, in its current crypto-imperialist form, is dead.

Much of the UK gets a huge boost from the EU. Places like the north and midlands get massive amounts of money pumped in from renewal and development funds.

Tell that to Greece, Portugal and Spain.

Truth is, the EU is not a perfect solution. Even if Europe were to become a "single nation" (like the United States) that wouldn't mean all parts of the Union would have the same economic development. Just look at the stark differences between places like New York, Massachusetts or California vs. Missouri and Luisiana.

Prima facie it's impossible to predict if the UK will be as severely affected as the Remain camp wants to paint it. Time will tell. If anything, I'm curious about all this (if painfully aware that it might affect the life of millions of people for the worst.)