European Union (Amendment) Bill

My hon. Friend the Member for Hertsmere (Mr. Clappison) said that so strong had been the arguments put in favour of the amendments, particularly amendment No. 20, that the Minister would have to have a very convincing reply. I am afraid that I do not think that he has made one. For all his continually good-humoured efforts in these debates, he has on this occasion been the only Member in the past two hours to have spoken on this matter and in any way defended the Government's position. He is paid to defend the Government's position, and it is not at all surprising that he has done so. However, during a debate in which a wide variety of Members have spoken, not a single Member in any other quarter of the House has supported that position. Several hon. Members have spoken as parliamentarians rather than as party politicians in this debate. The hon. Member for Kingston and Surbiton (Mr. Davey) and I have not seen eye to eye throughout most of this debate—