Debate over Europe needs to start now (From Basingstoke Gazette)
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Debate over Europe needs to start now
11:20am Friday 19th October 2012 in Letters
Sir.–I think in light of the Prime Minister’s remarks last week at the Conservative Party Conference about a possible future referendum on Britain’s place in Europe, that it would be healthy to start a debate now on this issue.
The EU, as now constituted, is a failure, not least because ordinary people have lost faith in Brussels’ ability to handle European crises.
Britain should, I believe, stay in “Europe”, but a Europe far removed from that now set up.
We should withdraw from the present arrangements and immediately invite a small number of countries to join us in a formal United Sates of Europe (USE).
Our institutions have often been the leaders in European history and should form the basis of the new USE.
World problems need world solutions and this can only be done by, eventually, the creation of a world government. A practical USE, with popular grass roots support, would be a vital and much needed step along the way.
–Steve Oakley, Chineham, Basingstoke.
