As voting gets underway for the EU referendum here's a few thoughts 23 June 2016

Normally in the UK it's customary to reserve the right to privacy when it comes to voting but many here have asked to have the views of the ForexLive UK contingent so here's a few thoughts as to my voting bias when I eventually get to the polling booth later today.

I would start by saying that this is not a time for politics per se but I need to trust my politicians, across all parties. PM Cameron only called this EU referendum because he gave an election manifesto pledge in a desperate bid to stave off UKIP defection. Then he concedes to a free vote amongst his party which has highlighted the deep divisions within not only the govt but the UK at large.

A change is required if we are to move forward. Voting Leave should make the position of both Cameron and fin min Osborne untenable which will be no great loss IMHO. A broken record and some. It's surely irrational to expect those who fiercely fought for Remain to steer us through the difficult negotiating waters that we will be sailing for a few years.

Be careful what you wish for, I know, and I'm certainly not saying I want Boris as PM and the threat/uncertainty of increased chances of devolution from Scotland, Wales and Ireland can not be underestimated. But it's time to change the landscape.

I had a tough time coming to this decision and my conscience over the loss of lives creating a united Europe came very much into play but after speaking to a few war vets I feel now that what they fought for has now morphed into something far differently. More a dictatorship by the pen rather than the sword.

Similarly my dear departed Dad, also a war vet having served in Burma in his early twenties, firmly believed in a free market and regularly drove his beloved Ford Anglia around Europe in the early 1960s flogging silver cutlery out of the boot to any hotel that would take it. But even my Dad would agree that Europe is a different place now and the EU is not just the common market for simpler trading purposes.

My decision to vote Leave doesn't mean I have any xenophobic view or leanings. I embrace Europeans and other citizens of the globe in equal measure. Nor does it reflect any misguided belief/throwback to crave bygone days of colonial Empire. I like to think I fully understand where we stand now in restricted terms in the bigger scheme of things.

My bearish view on the UK and GBP hasn't done me so bad over the past few years and I hope made some of you a few quid too. I'm swayed by lack of faith and belief in what we currently have and what I see around me and feel we need to change. A risk we should be taking. Similar balls required off the field of battle as on it.

Can we still be the 5th largest economy in the world after Brexit ? Who knows, but who's to say we can't be, or even bigger ? Why not try? Do we really accept that the rest of the world will stop trading with us? As a net importer the UK remains a prime target for global exporters.

One step back to take two forward maybe, and not without risks but as novelist and campaigner Jack London famously wrote:

"I would rather be ashes than dust.
I would rather that my spark should burn out in a brilliant blaze than it should be stifled by dry-rot.
I would rather be a superb meteor, every atom of me in magnificent glow, than a sleepy and permanent planet.
The function of man is to live, not to exist.
I shall not waste my days trying to prolong them.
I shall use my time."

It's an ethos I am very keen on and I'm going to use my time, and my vote, to put a cross in the box marked Leave.

Cameron made my mind up for me this week when he audaciously said that we had to vote Remain for the sake of our children and grand children. Well, I have children and hope one day to have grandchildren. I don't like what I see around me right now and I refuse to be bullied/scared.

I know my thoughts and views/conclusions have flaws and many of you will find issue with them. The post is not intended to influence any UK readers' voting choice but more, as requested, to give some illustration to the many issues we've had to weigh up and my general UK overview. I'm happy of course to discuss them in the comments section.

There's lots more I could add here and more detail behind those thoughts proffered but in the end there is no right or wrong way to vote. For me though it's about taking a positive, pro-active stance moving forward. If that means leaving the EU and taking a few risks then so be it. Sometimes you just have to believe you can make a difference.

As for trading the pound I remain a GBP bear and will happily sell rallies that we shall see if we decide to Remain. A win-win situation methinks!

Now for the chaos and mayhem shortly to ensue. Bring it on !