Too much information Denis

In the category “too much information”, we bring you a story from former Labour Europe Minister and über -europhile Denis MacShane. Keen as ever to convince the world that a Tory victory in the general elections will end Western civilization as we know it, he apparently shared the following - somewhat disturbing - tale with Italian newspaper Il Sole 24 Ore:

When [David Cameron] was running for the party’s leadership, I met him accidentally in the locker room of the House of Commons, while we were having a shower. I had gone jogging, while he [David Cameron] was back from a bicycle ride. I told him: ‘David, once you become a leader you have to give up one of the ideological pillars of your party, like all great statesmen do. Margaret Thatcher and Tony Blair did. I wish you will get rid of all those suspicions towards the EU’. He stared at me and said: ‘My dear Denis, I’m much more Eurosceptic than you may think’.

Okay, we get it. Europe should brace itself for the most isolationist Western leader since James Monroe (slight touch of irony there).

But did we really need to know about the shower, Denis?

Must-read

Three cheers for Marc Glendening over at the Democracy Movement for a long overdue (and at times hilarious) critique of the crazed rantings of "former Europe minister and arch New Labourite buffoon Denis MacShane".

Tut tut MacShane

Mark Harper's excellent idea for a Bill has been voted down. As his press release says, somehow, amid all the turmoil on the financial markets , the Government still found time to whip its MPs to oppose the bill to increase the transparency of EU legislation. In a rare break with usual practice, even Government Ministers were told to oppose the Bill.

It really is amazing that our Government is so keen to keep people in the dark about the facts. What are they hiding? But what is arguably more unbelievable, is the speech given by former Europe Minister Denis MacShane in response to the Bill in Parliament today.

Not only did he begin his speech with his usual drivel that anyone who dares suggest any kind of reform of the EU at all is part of the "Better off Out" campaign, poor confused Denis then went on to give a sound argument in favour of the bill - before voting against it.

He launched a long-winded explanation of the various different existing estimates that are out there about the proportion of national legislation that comes from the EU - (atttacking all but his own which suggests 10%) He said there were all sorts of inaccuracies and "lies" being peddled and gave a good account of the endless row over what the figure actually is.

Which is precisely what this Bill sought to resolve. To put an end once and for all to this long and boring row about how much national legislation actually originates in the EU.

It is extraordinary that somebody who accepts that there is so much confusion over the amount of legislation coming from the EU should then oppose efforts to increase transparency.

But that's not all. MacShane also made a song and dance about the 80-odd percent figure which was cited in Mark Harper's speech. He said it was a "lie", from "some anonymous German" and that nobody had ever been able to source it.

He even said the BBC (Mark Mardell in particular) have never been able to find it.

Well it took us about 10 minutes:

Former President Roman Herzog said it here (translation of original article in Welt Am Sonntag, February 14 2007)

The information he was basing his figure on is on page 15 here: (April 29, 2005, in the German Parliamentary Journal 15/5434 of May 6, 2005)

This is State Secretary Parliamentary Undersecretary Alfred Hartenbach Hartenbach saying: From 1998 until 2004 167 EU regulations and 750 directives have been passed. During the same period the German Parliament has in total 1.195 laws (as well as 3055 Rechtsverordnungen) passed.
(“Rechtsverordnungen” are a wide category of binding acts by Parliament, government, administration)

Chill out Denis

Former Europe Minister Denis MacShane has reacted to Stuart Wheeler’s call today for a referendum on the Lisbon Treaty.

MacShane said a referendum would be:

"a feast for all the xenophobic and isolationist forces in British politics and be a major boost for the BNP, UKIP and those 'better off out' Tories who want Britain to quit Europe".

"David Cameron… would plunge Britain into the maelstrom of a feast of anti-Europeanism by campaigning to repudiate the decision of the Commons and Lords this year to ratify the Lisbon Treaty.”

"The BNP, UKIP and all other anti-European forces would join in to indulge in months of xenophobic and isolationist hysteria.”


Reading this in the office, it struck us that MacShane's increasingly fiery rhetoric could be a product of 'curry addict synodrome'.

As regular vindaloo-eaters will be aware, the hotter the curry, the less able you are to taste normal foods afterwards - meaning everything needs to be overspiced for you to taste anything at all. Perhaps MacShane just doesn't see anything out of the ordinary in using this sort of language - it's just his default mode of communication...