---

European Affairs

Thank you for calling me to speak so early on in the debate, Madam Deputy Speaker. [Hon. Members: ““Oh!””] That was said in jest. I shall give a fairly non-intellectual exposition of my concerns about the European Union. It is the natural position of a Conservative to be sceptical about large and grandiose projects, and I make no apology for being sceptical about the European experiment. I believe that we should have a Europe full of self-confident, strong nation states that are free to act in their own national interest, but also to work together when it suits them. Often, hon. Members who raise concerns about the European Union are shouted down for being little Englanders. I am not a little Englander, but a rather big Englander. This country has a heritage of thinking big, because we have always looked overseas for our future. However, we have never looked towards Europe, and while its countries were squabbling, we were off exploring new worlds, creating new opportunities for the country. We are a great trading nation that does not like the artificial confines of the European Union, and we have truly wide horizons. The EU experiment is increasingly seen as an exercise for the political classes that is far removed from the concerns of ordinary men and women as they go about their daily business. There is a growing lack of accountability in Europe, and we Members of Parliament have some responsibility for that, as well as the responsibility to address those concerns. At each stage of the European experiment, when people raised their concerns, we just said, rather patronisingly, ““No, no; you are just seeing ghosts. It will never happen,”” but what was originally conceived of as a trading bloc is now moving into involvement in social and workplace legislation, and that is a far remove from what was originally conceived by the so-called founding fathers. The hon. Member for Birmingham, Edgbaston (Ms Stuart) showed that she really knew her stuff when she accused EU institutions of mission creep, because when grand institutions come into being, the first thing that they want is to grab even more power. The EU is its own worst enemy, because it constantly meddles and interferes. A classic example is its failing labour market model. European labour markets are not competitive, as they do not create jobs. We heard about the big ideas at the Lisbon summit of 2000. Delegates at the summit said that Europe should create 20 million new jobs by 2010—they thought that just by talking about it, it would happen. However, not one new job has been created. Structural unemployment in France and Germany has not budged in the past two decades. While some countries, including the UK, have enjoyed economic growth of varying levels, Europe has remained stagnant. Far from wanting to adopt the UK model, Europe continues to look inward, persisting with failed labour market solutions. It has tried to foist its problems, including the working time directive, on us. What business is it of Government to tell people how long they should work?