THIS, Graces Gran and other Remainers was the prime reason I wanted out of the EU.
'The style of government favoured by the European Union is very different from the free state that our ancestors fought to develop over many centuries. The single most important element of our constitution is that the government can be thrown out at any time by a simple majority in the House of Commons, and an immediate election called. This possibility remains, but now that fewer of our laws are made by Parliament, the value of being able to hold rulers to account has diminished. The EU makes occasional concessions to democracy here and there, but the primary thrust of the EU project from the outset has been to centralise power in the hands of rulers who have as free a hand as they can get away with. The EU will not change, which means that we need urgently to recover our powers of self-government, while we still have the chance.
The EU is bad for democracy, bad for personal freedom, and bad for pluralistic civil society. It is bad for democracy because it is a power grab that seeks to take control away from nations that have been, and remain, the best safeguard against the abuse of political power. Such abuse remains one of the great problems faced by any state. Historically nations tended to be run by elites intent on expropriating wealth and power. Many countries still are. Democratic accountability under a liberal constitution has successfully contained the abuse of power in Britain and many other countries. A vital ingredient of constitutional democracy is national allegiance, a sentiment towards which the EU elite is unremittingly hostile. The only legitimate basis for the use of force by a government is that there has been consent, but Brussels decision makers are insulated from accountability. By contrast, our system from the earliest times allowed Parliament to exercise control over the income and expenditure of the executive and the policies of office holders.'
We are going to be free of that disturbing EU control. It is growing into an expensive political monster with more restrictions than benefits.