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European Union (Amendment) Bill

It would remove it, but only in so far as anything in the treaty sought to impose an obligation on this Parliament to act in a particular way. One argument that has been put consistently, not only by the Government but by supporters of the EU—indeed, it is a view with which I have a considerable degree of sympathy when I approach it from a lawyer's angle—is that any surrendering of sovereignty by this House should be voluntary. Equally, if the House wants to take back any area of sovereignty it should be able to do so, although it might face consequences under its international treaty obligations. I have picked out the areas that concern me and highlighted the fact that I did not understand that it was the Government's intention to impose through these treaty obligations on Parliament to act in a particular fashion.