AS your readers will be aware, the Government will put the question of the UK’s membership of the EU to the British people before the end of 2017 in the form of a referendum.

The EU needs to change and it is time for the British people, not politicians, to have their say. Before the referendum takes place, the Government has said it will negotiate a new deal for Britain, seeking greater EU accountability and more power for national parliaments.

  I believe in the UK being part of a strong Europe, one that serves our needs and knows its boundaries. The EU must be reformed if we are to continue our involvement within it. I fully support the plan to negotiate a new relationship with the EU.

Part of my role as a MEP is to work to that end and I can assure you that British Conservative MEPs here and in Brussels are working hard to monitor what is going on in Europe and fighting to make it better for the UK.

Julie Girling MEP