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European Affairs

I am listening with great interest to my right hon. Friend on this hugely important matter. He referred to the question of further treaty transfers of powers, and as he will know, the coalition agreement states:""We agree that there should be no further transfer of sovereignty or powers over the course of the next Parliament"" before referring to the working time directive. Will he concede—I am sure this is the case in a legal and constitutional sense—that "powers" in that context includes the extension of powers under the Lisbon treaty and the introduction of directives?