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European Communities (Finance) Bill

I am sorry; the hon. Gentleman is the former interim leader of the Liberal Democrats. He touched on what unites many of us in this House, strange as it may seem. I profoundly believe in the comity of nations. For the four most recent centuries of this country's history, it has been vitally engaged in what happens in Europe. Our prosperity as a mercantile nation depends on trade. All those things are true. Where we have common interests, surely we should work together for them. At the heart of this matter is the question of who governs. I am delighted to see the Chief Secretary to the Treasury in his post, but goodness knows what has happened to the Treasury. Contrary to the environmental policies of the Government, he paraded a forest-full of notes, letters and papers. They were pushed across to him along the Benches to assist him in trying to define a very curious position. As my hon. Friend the Member for North Essex (Mr. Jenkin) has just said, this is about who bears taxes, how we negotiate and how we achieve the objectives of those who sent us here. What the Chief Secretary has tried to do in presenting this Bill represents an extraordinary distortion of facts that are on the record. We know what Mr. Blair negotiated and what promises and undertakings were given, as do the Liberal Democrats. This is not about Europe per se, in the sense of people being anti-Europe—that will come next week if we are to engage on a great issue. This is about now, and the Chief Secretary's characterisation of other hon. Members as having a distaff view—if I may put it like that—does no credit to the Government. Each one of us here accounts as best we can for the arguments that we support. We heard the poorest level of distillation, spin and obfuscation. He was confronted with rational arguments and, as often as not, he did not even understand them. The proposition put during a most distinguished contribution from the Front Bench by my hon. Friend the Member for Runnymede and Weybridge (Mr. Hammond), and put by my right hon. Friend the Member for Hitchin and Harpenden (Mr. Lilley) and by the hon. Member for Twickenham (Dr. Cable) was a rational argument as to whether the proposal was negotiated worthily and in the British interest—the interest of the people whom we represent and of whom my hon. Friend the Member for North Essex was speaking—and whether we could have done better. The judgment of most independents standing to a side would be to say that this Government did not do at all well. In the end, we have to stand before our electorate and justify what we are doing. The tranches of money involved are huge, and we are entering a period of great uncertainty in the international situation. All of us know and recognise that, and we tremble in many instances. This Government have committed the taxpayers—the people whom we represent—to laying out sums of money, and they then come to dance in front of the House hoping that their spin will get them out of the situation. That they promised something else is neither here nor there, because they try to rewrite the story of what was promised. That is the deceit that we have had this evening. The Financial Secretary can keep waving. I take it as an indication that she and the Chief Secretary are drowning, in the terms of the poem. There is no poetry in this debate. It is a sad reflection of how destitute the Government are in the arguments that they now advance to try to show probity. We could get a better deal and the only amendment— It being Ten o'clock, Mr. Speaker put forthwith the Question already proposed from the Chair, pursuant to Order [this day]. Question put, That the Bill be now read the Third time:— The House divided: Ayes 309, Noes 208.