Don't Believe The Budget Bombast

When John Major increased Britain's contribution to the EU Budget, he withdrew the Whip from half a dozen Conservative MPs who abstained. None voted against, and the abstainers represented about one quarter of the 22 who had voted against Maastricht (as one of them had not done). Across the floor, there was a Labour three-line whip to abstain. No one defied that and voted in favour, but there were 44 Labour votes against, one third of the number that, in voting against Maastricht, had outnumbered Conservative opponents by three to one even though there was a Conservative overall majority at the time.

So believe one word of the Tory tough talk when anything comes of it, and not a moment before. Following on from the anti-Maastricht veteran Peter Hain's accurate statement on Question Time that EU competition law was a threat to the NHS, this is Ed Miliband's chance to impose a three-line whip against any increase, thus ridding himself once and for all of any Eurocrazy Blairite rump, although a series of breaks with them in the division lobbies, on a range of issues, would be both more fun and more use.

And thus opening up the debate on restoring the supremacy of British over EU law, on using that to restore the United Kingdom's historic fishing rights in accordance with international law, on requiring all EU legislation to pass through both Houses as if it had originated in one or other of them, on requiring British Ministers to adopt the show-stopping Empty Chair Policy until the Council of Ministers met in public and published an Official Report akin to Hansard, on disapplying any legislation passed by the European Parliament unless passed by the majority of those MEPs certified as politically acceptable by one or more seat-taking MPs, and on the disapplication of any ruling of the ECJ, or of the ECHR, or of the "Supreme Court" unless ratified by a resolution of the House of Commons.

Money matters, but it has never been the main issue. So, will Cameron take these opportunities to denounce that silly, half-educated woman who thought it was, and who therefore banged on about her rebate but merrily signed the Single European Act, the source of the anti-NHS competition law of which she would have approved so strongly? Will Ed Miliband give him the opportunity to do so?