Merchant Banker, LibDem: spot the difference.

As a devoted follower of this blog you will recall - yes, I know I’m talking to myself - we’ve been having problems using English debit cards in Italy, and I emailed both English and Italian MEPs to try to get something done (see entry for 30th March). One English MEP responded by phone the same day. Today I had a reply from a Liberal Democrat MEP’s ‘caseworker’:

Dear Mr Richards

Thank you for your letter.

I was not aware of this problem. As far as I can discover, it only applies

to banks in Italy.

I do not think there is a great deal that can be done at EU level, since the

problem seems to concern inter-bank systems and relations. It may be that

pressure from the Uk government could be applied, to which end I suggest you

contact the FO, or the Westminster MP for your previous address in Norfolk.

Yours sincerely

(Steve Marshall

Casework Officer )

On behalf of Andrew Duff 

Liberal Democrat MEP to the East of England

I  replied as follows:

Dear Mr Marshall

Thank you for your reply. You are correct in thinking the problem only applies to Italy. However, I should have thought this is exactly the issue which should be dealt with at EU level. Surely this affects the free movement of goods and services which it's the EU's function to promote? Recent experience has taught us that 'inter-bank systems and relations' are far too important to be left to bankers. 

  I had believed that  the Liberal Democrats - unlike New Labour and the Conservatives -shared my belief that only a strong and united EU will be in the position to meet the challenges posed by the rising economies of China and India. Or has the little-Englandism  fostered by the Murdoch press proved too attractive a vote-winner?

Yours sincerely

So here we have an MEP from an also-ran party who has a ‘caseworker’ to deal with the people he’s paid to represent - he’s far too important to reply himself - who seems to have no concept of what the EU’s about. I’ve never considered voting for the Liberals, especially after they aligned themselves with Doctor Death and the rest of the Gang of Four. But they did have some good ideas: local income tax, an hypothecated penny rise in income tax, a commitment to European unity. All abandoned, God knows why. Do they really think they’re ever going to be voted into government? Why not remain  a progressive force which might occasionally prick the consciences of Labour and Tories. Why not take a statesmanlike position on what is, with global warming and energy supplies, the big issue confronting the UK: if we don’t have a federal Europe we’re all fucked. Our grandchildren will scrape a living showing Chinese and Indian tourists around our quaint little third-world island. The US is big enough to survive, no European country is, with the possible exception of Germany. The rich of course will continue to do well as they do in today’s third world. It’s just the descendants of the ordinary decent majority of people, conned into thinking the EU’s their enemy, who will suffer.

No wonder the ‘caseworker’ thinks interbank systems should be left to the bankers. He may not share an occupation with the merchant bankers, but cockney rhyming slang connects them.