European Communities (Finance) Bill

““We surrender; now let us negotiate.”” That seems to have been the Government's stance when they went to Brussels. Throughout the discussions—during the original negotiations, subsequently and again today—an entirely false dichotomy has been posed. We supposedly have either to accept anything at all that the European Union proposes, or to leave the EU, which would result in the collapse of civilisation as we know it. Those are not the alternatives—[Interruption.] I am glad to see the Chief Secretary nodding in agreement. Remember that exactly the same position was put forward when joining the euro was mooted. For a period, people said that if we did not join, the economy would collapse: 10 zillion jobs were going to go, and there would be a wasteland from John O'Groats to Land's End. Well, we did not join the euro, and lo and behold, the economy has gone from strength to strength, thanks not only to the brilliance of the former Chancellor, who is now the Prime Minister, but to the correctness of that decision. Nowadays, not only can I not find anybody in favour of Britain joining the euro, but I find it almost impossible to find anybody who was ever in favour of it—such has been the process of re-education.