EUROSCEPTIC ORGANISATIONS SOUND AN UNCERTAIN NOTE

Dateline: l6th February 2000

One of the problems which afflicts the democratic anti-EU forces in the United Kingdom is organisations which seem to be "with us" but which in fact sound, at best, an uncertain tone and on occasion even contradict democratic nationhood.

One such organisation is Business for Sterling which does not even rule out as a matter of principle the abolition of the Pound and the Bank of England and are content to remain in Phase 2 of Maastricht’s Economic and Monetary Union which requires that the British Chancellor of the Exchequer runs our economy to the benefit of the European Union and who must report regularly to the European Commission!

Another organisation, The Democracy Movement has put to sitting MPs three questions of such an innocuous nature that even eurofanatics can (and do) give the "right" answers.

Their first question: "Will you oppose scrapping the Pound and replacing it with the new (sic) Euro as long as you are my MP?" MPs could oppose the Euro personally but still vote for it if their Whips ordered them to. However in any case as the Maastricht Treaty makes  clear, there is little the British Government can do to resist the EURO so long as we are within the EU's constitutional straightjacket (in particular the Single European Market) and subject to the judgements of the European Court of Justice.

Their second question: “Will you fight the attempts by Brussels to increase any UK taxes towards EU levels?” shows the same naivety since we long ago lost this “fight”. Eurofanatics can all "fight" and (willingly) lose. The Democracy Movement does not ask if the MP will actually restore our constitutional right to say "NO".

Their third question: "Do you believe Brussels should be able to overrule laws made by the British Parliament?" There is no shortage of MPs who voted for that very constitutional loss, who nevertheless NOW say "No". But they show no sign of lifting a finger to repeal the Acts which gave Brussels that power.

There is only one commitment which really challenges those who claim to want to restore our sovereignty - the South Molton Declaration, a detailed document which commits MPs to putting a Bill before Parliament which will have real legislative and constitutional force – and agreeing to resign if they fail to do so.