European Union (Amendment) Bill

I think that the hon. Gentleman is misinterpreting it. The answer to that was given by my right hon. Friend the Member for Leicester, West (Ms Hewitt). There are sections that say that Parliaments ““may”” respond to the subsidiarity issue, and that is the correct interpretation. Having dealt during the past nine years with the Commission and the machinery of bureaucracy, I do not have the warm opinion of them that the hon. Gentleman has. When they say ““shall””, they mean to compel, not to empower; I can assure him of that. I do not think that the amendments are necessary. The debate is necessary, because it gives the Government a chance to tell us how they will face the challenge if anyone comes to interpret the treaty in the way that it might be interpreted, which would be detrimental to the rights of Parliament and the people of this country.