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European Union (Amendment) Bill

My Lords, there are some sad occasions in this House, even during the passage of the European Union (Amendment) Bill. There should not be, really, as it should be a very jolly occasion looking forward to the treaty coming into force if the Bill passes all its stages. However, I hope that the noble Lord, Lord Pearson, will not be offended if I say that that was like a Captain Queeg performance from him, if you remember The Caine Mutiny. These obsessive neuroses about the evil, wicked effect of European Union membership on member states, particularly Britain, are really going too far. I presume the majority of eurofacts, the magazine of UKIP, is written by the noble Lord, Lord Pearson, himself; I do not know. The front page of the latest edition has a leading article saying that the European Commission is preparing a directive to prohibit people in any member state from criticising the European Union. They are apparently at work on measures to prevent the burning of the flag. I do not know who wants to burn the European flag anyway, but this was actually raised in Committee on this Bill a few weeks ago. I mean—