Prime Minister David Cameron says a 6% rise in the EU budget would be unacceptable, as he arrives in Brussels for a summit meeting of the European Council.
However, Cast Iron Dave then tempers his faux intolerance of this insane largesse by meekly pleading that the increase is limited to the ‘lowest possible’ amount. Our national leader is reduced to the humiliating role of beggar.
But then, it’s all sophistry.
The fact is unless Cameron can secure the support of a majority of the Council in rejecting an increase in the EU budget – which he will not – nothing he says makes any difference at all. The Tories are fond of arguing they should remain aboard the EU gravy train in order to have ‘influence in Europe’. But issues such as this underline the fallaciousness of that self serving argument. We have no influence over the EU. The bureaucracy is beyond our reach.
Even the Prime Minister – the most powerful UK politician – is incapable of preventing the EU from doing what it wants. The desire of the political class to be at the ‘heart of Europe’ has cost this country dear. Not only has our sovereignty been eroded, we are increasingly paying the price in pounds and pence too. The EU means Britons have no say over how Britain is governed and means Britons have less money in their pockets.
None of the limited and questionable ‘benefits’ of EU membership necessitated this loss of sovereignty and drain on our wallets. We get nothing from the EU that make any of this a price worth paying.
Actually, there is one thing he could say which would make a difference.
What about it cast-iron? ‘Can’t pay, won’t pay!!’
Mid-November is the earliest that the Council will pronounce on this matter. Dave’s puff will be chip wrappers long before. Celebrity cr*tch shots will be the headlines, as usual. In the face of the constant smokescreen of cuts of 25%, who the hell is going to notice 6% of anything in either direction.
Erratum: for ‘Council’ read ‘Conciliation Committee’ JTD
If ever a person ignored body language, Cameron is king. With Blair came the weakening of visual expressions, but enough was left to the cartoonists to have a field day. Brown appeared like a decomposing body. But Cameron – the array of expressions from on extreme to another can surely only ever before have been seen in a creche. The man has no idea of what he is doing, what he intends to do – or what it seems, he looks like. Words, thousand, pictures, do tell.