News Release

7th February 2003

EUROPE VERSUS LOCAL SERVICES?

Draft plans being published today for the future European Union to be run "on a federal basis" are unacceptable and "would cost the British taxpayer billions and drain local services of resources" says Michael Fabricant. "Services are already overstretched in the West Midlands. We are still awaiting Government funding for the new hospital promised for Lichfield and the local Government settlement is putting huge strains on Staffordshire's education and police services. It's easy just to ignore the European Union, but these plans would make the funding situation worse", Michael adds.

The president of the Convention on the Future of Europe, Valery Giscard d'Estaing, has just unveiled the constitution's first 15 draft articles. Even the normally pro European Labour Government has raised concerns about the use of the word "federal" and suggestions that the EU should have sweeping economic and foreign policy making powers.

Michael Fabricant says: "We still don't know how much our current membership of the European Union costs. The Government refuses point blank to do the analysis. One American estimate puts it as high as £30 billion annually - that's equivalent to our building around 100 brand new district general hospitals in Britain every year! We need new hospitals in our area. Birmingham is under particular pressure. Now, maybe the figures are wrong. We just don't know. But this will be made far worse by Valery Giscard d'Estaing latest proposals. I am now calling on the Government and Gordon Brown, in particular, to conduct its own public analysis of the cost (or the net gain) of our membership of the European Union as a matter of urgency. This information should no longer be kept a secret".