Spreading the Bad Word

True pan-European
Prat, Andrew Duff MEP

As many will know, the situation in the Netherlands apropos the method of ratification of the proposed European Reform Treaty (constitution) is somewhat up in the air at the moment. The position, or rather lack of one, on whether the proposed European Reform Treaty should be the subject of a popular vote, is one where confusion reigns to a degree that even the Lib Dems would find embarrassing.

Unlike President Sarkozy in France, who sought, and was given a clear mandate to approve the treaty in parliament, nobody it would seem, has a strong enough mandate to do anything. It seems even as though the Dutch parliament could split on the issue, where conventional wisdom forecasts a strong possibility of a pro-referendum vote in the lower house, being blocked by the differently composed upper house. At the executive level the lack of anything approaching a decision points to splits within the Dutch cabinet.

What is needed is a strong voice and leadership, and today it would seem they have got the first of these. Loud, persistent and annoying may be more apposite adjectives though as the voice in question is that of none other than that tireless campaigner to keep the people out of any decision involving the European Union, British Lib Dem democracy hating MEP Andrew Duff.

The EU Observer reports today on Duffs's ill-judged and inappropriate intervention into the internal affairs of another sovereign nation:

UK liberal MEP Andrew Duff last week released a statement on the Dutch Council of State report saying "The Treaty certainly deserves careful and informed scrutiny by the Dutch parliament, but I hope that the Dutch government and parliament now confirms that there will be no referendum in the Netherlands.

"This is not the first time in their history that the Dutch have taught the British a good constitutional lesson."

Source: EU Observer

I suppose I should really welcome his input. Most interventions by overseas politicians in purely domestic matters of another nation do have a bit of a habit of being spectacularly counter-productive.

I hope that those few Dutch voters who hear and give a damn about what Duff and his cronies like the equally unpleasant Mr Watson think about how they should run their affairs give him a swift language lesson in the meaning of 'Ga kots drinken ranzige smegmakegel'.

I suppose that it is largely the pompous arrogance and self-importance of Lib Dem MEPs that irks me so much, being just moderately large fish in the relativly small and very stagnant pond that is the ALDE group in the European parliament. These are not terms I would apply to the majority of Lib Dem supporters and MPs that I have seen, who I have generally found to be very pleasant people who simply hold different political views to myself, but their Brussels contingent really do show the institution they support at its very worst.

Mr Duff should really consider the strength of his own democratic mandate before lecturing others on how they should tread their own democratic path. Considering the general antipathy of the people of many of the people who he represents to the EU, does he really think that under any other electoral system than the appalling party-lists, that he would have even the chance of a very small snow ball in an especially fiery hell of ever holding elected office again were his personal positions to come under public scrutiny?

I've tried to lay off the EU, but with tossers like Duff around campaigning for ever less involvement of people across the continent in how they are governed it's just to big an ask.