Undemocratic EU dictates British policy

I make no secret of the fact that I am an old leftie, and that one of the more interesting experiences was explaining to a gathering of students why I was sharing a platform with a Conservative Eurosceptic.

They understood that there was no point in the MP and I having political differences if policy was being imposed upon us by an unelected, unrepresentative and unaccountable political elite based in Brussels.

And that is the truth of the matter.

The 500 million people in the EU are under a yoke, not actively involved or effectively represented by the anti-democratic ramp which is the EU.

Any EU gains in the area of the environment are betrayed by the loss of democracy generally, self-government in Italy, Greece and Ireland thanks to the single currency, the destruction of Britain's fishing industry and manufacturing base, the workers' directive and constitutionalised neoliberal economic policies.

It is worth noting that human rights gains are the province of the Council of Europe, a very different organisation from the EU.

If we are going to have a debate, let us have it on the facts. For example, the rest of the EU trades with Britain at a colossal profit, so I doubt that they would wish to give up this profit by imposing sanctions on a liberated Britain.

Plenty to lose? I fancy regaining the £35 million a day of rebates that EU membership costs Britain. That would build or keep a heck of a lot of homes, hospitals, schools and other real benefits currently under threat.

David Radlett

Gillingham