EUROFANATIC BLAIR IN CLOUD-CUCKOO-LAND

Dateline: 24th February 2000

Master Blair's Ghent essay on Britain in Europe. The European Union is one of the "outstanding achievements of the 20th century" - 10% unemployment, the destruction of 11 central banks, 15 democratic constitutions, corporatist-bureaucratic rule from Brussels and war against Yugoslavia.

It provided "a framework for law and respects the rights of Europe's democracies". The law is made solely by bureaucrats and a "Court of Justice" which proclaims its political mission. The newly free nations of Eastern Europe face the end of their democratic nation states shortly after they wrested them from Soviet Communism.

"Europe's prosperity and free trade". Like the continuing illegal beef ban, road blocks preventing free movement of goods and the smell of burning British lamb on French motorways?

"Britain has always been at the centre of Europe". A casual glance at the map will show us on the extreme North West periphery (whereas we are at the centre of the English speaking world, the Commonwealth and the world's financial and trading community).

"Nearly 60% of our trade is with the EU". In fact it is less than 40% and the accumulated deficit since 1972 is nearing £200,000 million. A unique achievement!

"3 million jobs depend on Europe". Then why are non-EU countries Norway and Switzerland the richest countries in Europe, why is unemployment more than twice as high inside the Euro-zone and why are German and French companies fleeing to Britain and British europhile companies investing heavily in the USA and South East Asia? (Since the foundation of the Euro approximately 180,000 million $ of investment has been fled the Euro-zone.)

Britain outside the EU would be "poorer and weaker" so why, since our ejection from the European Exchange Rate Mechanism in 1992, have we become richer and stronger, why has the Euro collapsed and why are our medium term interest rates for the first time lower than Germany's?

Stupid boy - 0 out of ten.