From the horse's mouth

In the current edition of the Centre of European Reform Bulletin, is a paper written by its director of foreign policy, Mark Leonard.

Entitled, Europe’s transformative power, Leonard offers us these priceless gems:

Europe's power is easy to miss. Like an 'invisible hand', it operates through the shell of traditional political structures. The British House of Commons, British law courts, and British civil servants are still here, but they have all become agents of the European Union implementing European law. This is no accident. By creating common standards that are implemented through national institutions, Europe can take over countries without necessarily becoming a target for hostility.

In the same paper, he later states:

Europe's obsession with legal frameworks means that it transforms the countries it comes into contact with, instead of just skimming the surface. The US may have changed the regime in Afghanistan, but Europe is changing all of Polish society, from its economic policies and property laws to its treatment of minorities and what gets served on the nation's tables. The lonely superpower can bribe, bully, or impose its will almost anywhere in the world, but when its back is turned, its potency wanes. In contrast, the strength of the EU is broad and deep: once sucked into its sphere, countries are changed forever.

There it is, from this unimpeachable Europhile source. Take the remarkably frank admission: "The British House of Commons, British law courts, and British civil servants are still here, but they have all become agents of the European Union". Now read this.

And what of the assertion: "once sucked into its sphere, countries are changed forever"? When I wrote about the "Borg" in a previous posting, was I so far off the mark?

Now do you see why we have to say "no" to the EU constitution?