Down – but up
The EU budget is supposed to cut spending by 3.3 per cent. Cameron’s negotiations ended with Britain paying even more to the EU, but he said afterwards “our contributions were always going to go up.”
Hands off our food!
Food law has been under EU control (“competence”) since 2002. As a result regular inspections and food testing ended. Instead, EU Regulation 178/2002 says that all food products should be accompanied by a piece of paper on which every “food operator” from farm to consumer vouched for its quality.
That did not work too well, but the EU ties our hands if Britain wants to act against food adulteration. We cannot introduce a temporary ban on foreign meat under trade rules, and even have to negotiate with Brussels before introducing random testing.
Help, cries Germany
The British government admits it has no idea how many Bulgarians and Romanians will come here from next January. Several German cities are already begging for help from central government to deal with the effects of mass migration from those countries, including problems in schools, illegal working, increased benefit pay-outs, and an alarming rise in organised crime.
Not-so-super Mario
The Five-Star Movement emerged from the Italian elections with support around 25 per cent and as the largest single party in the lower house. Outgoing Prime Minister Mario Monti was the biggest loser. A Goldman Sachs old boy, he was appointed to the job by the EU. Fewer than 10 per cent of the votes went to his party. Almost 60 per cent of Italians voted for parties pledged to end EU-mandated austerity.
Anti-euro party
A new German anti-euro party, Alternative for Germany, argues that Germany should no longer guarantee the debts of other states and that the single currency should be abandoned, with all states free to leave the euro. It also pledges to offer a referendum on any proposed further transfers of sovereignty to the EU. ■