REGIONALISATION has become a lead topic among councillors recently. They now realise that the prestigious title 'Councillor' will mean nothing if England is split into regions.

Our warnings were ignored that the Maastricht Treaty, which John Major signed in 1992, ratified plans which had been prepared during the previous 20 years.

One of the three central pillars of European integration, together with the single market and the single currency, is regional government able to bypass National Government.

It was in 1971 that the Council of Europe first produced a map showing the UK broken into regions. The SW Region covers an area including Gloucestershire to Cornwall to Hampshire in the east. The latest SW Regional Planning Guidance Strategy Map divides the region into four sub-regions. Plymouth and Barnstaple join Cornwall in the west sub-region, Torbay and Exeter join with Taunton and Yeovil in the centre sub-region, then there is the north sub-region and the south east sub-region.

In 1994 John Gummer (Conservative) set up Regional Government Offices. This was to comply with the Council of Europe's main weapon in its regionalisation campaign that regional structure had to be in place to receive EU fundings. These Regional Government Offices are still in place.

When Labour took office in 1997 they pushed through Regional Government for Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and London. They also set up Regional Development Agencies (RDA) for the other eight regions on the map.

Mr Prescott Introduced Regional Assemblies to 'oversee' the RDAs. The SW Regional Assembly has been meeting since 1999. However, Mr Prescott failed to mention any EU link in his White Paper on regionalisation, but did say how Regional Assemblies could apply for EU grants.

The function of the assemblies will be to administer — arts, sports and language; economic development (RDA); environment; housing including planning permission; some transport policy; plus administration of EU structural funds. The SW Regional Assembly will cost in the region of £25-million per year to run.

I fail to see that the transfer of power away from county and district councils will give the taxpayer any more democracy. I see similarity with the past. According to 'The House that Hitler Built' by Stephen Roberts, professor of modern history at the University of Sydney, Hitler developed an idea to establish regions of Europe as a means of destroying national identities. A concept of divide and rule.

Dave Weeks

UK Independence

Party member

Courtlyns

Exbourne