GILES Chichester?s mock outrage (Letters, February 26) over a recent voting session in the EU parliament on the Working Time Directive is grossly over-egged, as is the directive itself.
The three UKIP MEPs did indeed make a simple mistake ? for which we apologise. In a typical voting session, some 400 amendments are voted on in one hour and very few of those present know what they are voting for and simply follow their group leader?s instruction. Such is the insulting attention given by the EU Parliament to the democratic process!
Perhaps Mr Chichester, his fellow Tory MEPs and the Lib/Dem and Labour MEPs would like to offer their apologies for all voting for the enlargement of the EU from 15 to 25 members, or were they too confused? This will allow 73 million Eastern Europeans open access to the UK from May unless the UK Government reverses its previous stupid decision.
Thank goodness the three UKIP MEPs voted against the enlargement, for the obvious reasons that the UK is already bursting at the seams. The EU doesn?t work with 15 and will never work with 25 members.
Graham Booth MEP
SW UKIP
IN his letter. Conservative MEP Giles Chichester lambasts UKIP?s MEPs.
However, I would like to remind readers why Britain has MEPs in the first place.
When Conservative Prime Minister Ted Heath signed the Treaty of Rome he claimed it was a trading agreement and nothing more.
The Conservatives signed a further two treaties, each one ceding more control of our country to Brussels.
As a precursor to the Euro they took us into the disastrous Exchange Rate Mechanism, people lost jobs and homes and it nearly bust the country.
Consequently our fishing industry has been decimated, our farmers are facing an uncertain future and horses and ponies doomed to live export for the meat trade.
For the privilege, British tax payers bung into the EU coffers over £30-million per day when our NHS could well do with this money.
So, is UKIP the villain in the story? I think not.
Graham Palmer
UKIP ? South East Cornwall
Lambs Park
Sheepstor