We now have a couple of months to decide which way we should vote in the EU referendum, but how do we know which is the best option? As a Chamber of Commerce, we represent many different companies and organisations and so cannot give a recommendation either way because it would not be the view of all our members. However, I would like to make some suggestions which might help individuals to decide.

There is no doubt in my mind that there is a great deal of wasted money in the whole bureaucratic system that is the EU, but that seems to be the nature of government at whatever level. Do we really think that our politicians would be any better at managing money than when we are part of a European model?

Before the referendum was announced I believed it was a bad idea to have one. I had formed this opinion after a two day visit to Brussels where I and a number of Chamber members from all over the County had a chance to see how it all works and speak to people from various Countries and departments. It became apparent then, that the average person in the street has no idea of the real benefits or downsides of being a member state. In fact it became obvious that other member states have exactly the same reservations as most of us, but they all believed they were better having influence from the inside than being on the outside with no say on anything. My belief at the time was that we elect politicians to make decisions on our behalf and they should be much better informed than we are, and therefore the best people to decide what is good for us.

After listening to various debates on the subject, politicians who have supposedly got access to the same information come out with completely different views to each other and have not left us any better informed than we were.

So my advice is to speak to people in business, education, farming, finance, and manufacturing and ask them what advantages or disadvantages they get from being part of the EU.

With such a big decision to make, you owe it to yourselves and your children to find out as much as you can before you decide. The sad truth is that the politicians are only likely to give you a fear led set of views to persuade you one way or the other.

Colin Barrell, president of Taunton Chamber of Commerce