The EU Knew the Scale of Greece, Ireland, Spain & Portugal's Economic Problems All Along

The European Union never ceases to amaze me. Not in a good way, but in a way that FIFA's attitude towards England never ceases to amaze me. On a quick side note, FIFA are nothing but a bunch of anglophobic fat cat self-proscribed Kings with little to no warranted involvement in football. But that's a different matter, I just needed to get that off my chest.

Flicking through a text book on the European Union a couple of tables catch my eye. One of which is the table for "The Cohesion Fund". It catches my eye because the only four countries which got the fund were the four countries that need or have had major bailouts. Bizarrely, they're even in the order of financial strife.

The Cohesion Fund was set up as a result of the Maastricht summit to provide funds for 'energy and telecommunications' for the poorest member states. Pre-2004 therefore, the European Union knew very well that taking on Greece, Ireland, Portugal and Spain would be a disastrously risky move. The only way to tackle economic problems, according to the EU is to simply throw money. In total nearly 3 billion Euros were given to just four countries.

These four countries, in 2003, accounted for over a quarter of the loans granted by the EU. This in real money, for the period of 1997-2003 means that these four countries were granted a whopping 45 billion Euros of loans. That's equivalent to 20 years of savings from coalition government cuts!

It doesn't end there. In 2003 there were only four countries that were net beneficiaries of their EU budget contributions. Those countries, yes you guessed it, were Greece, Ireland, Spain and Portugal. The UK got 3% LESS back from their EU budget contribution. The table below shows the percentage profit made by the four countries:

Greece, Spain and Portugal shouldn't be entirely blamed for the mess that they are in. The three countries, were very reluctant in joining the Euro so early, citing that they felt they were not economically ready. The EU Commission, didn't care. Nothing was going to stop their European dream. Ireland, on the other hand, were very eager beavers.

What strikes me the most about all of this data is that it is an outright lie that the European Union had no idea that the four countries would pose economical problems both for themselves as nation states and for the European Union. They knew even when bullying a reluctant Greece, Portugal and Spain in to the Euro that they were playing with fire.

It is that what frightens me the most about the European Union. That they put their own European Dream ahead of reality, the attitude of regardless we will go on.

A New Exercise in Democracy? EU Can't Be Serious

Maybe the weather has got to my head, or maybe I'm just trying to avoid the inevitable clasp the inevitable doom of Wolves' position in the Premier League. Either way, someone should ban me from going on any pro-EU websites, most of all the official EU website, Europa.

Lording it up on their website is an article titled "New Exercise in Democracy". Wow I think to myself, perhaps they've all smoked pot in Amsterdam and come to their senses that democracy ain't all that bad. Wrong! The article refers to the and is described as:

Introduced by the Lisbon treaty, the European citizens initiative is intended to make the EU more democratic by giving citizens a more direct say in its policies.

OK, sounds good. I want the EU to consider banning overseas religious preachers. So what do I do? Write a letter? Arrange a meeting? Get the number twenty bus in to town to speak to my local elected representative? None of the above. I need to save up enough money to finance a multinational petition covering at least three EU countries with at least 300,000 (yes, three-hundred-thousand) signatures.

And that's not even half way there. The European Commission then decides whether the interests of those 300,000 people from a minimum of three EU countries is worth their time or own interests shutting it down immediately, or giving it the thumbs up for phase two. Phase two can't be that big a deal can it? After all we've convinced 300,000 people from more than 3 EU countries to sign a petition and then we've convinced the EU Commission that all 300,000 people's interests are worthy of their attention. So what more?

After the thumbs up, we need a total of 700,000 more signatures from a minimum of a total of nine EU countries. Oh and that's not the only thing. You know those signatures I've been banging on about? I slipped up. I need to go back to those 1 million people and convince them to also give me their national identification number, in the form of their social security numbers or passport numbers.

Not only that, due to data protection laws I have to also invest in security measures to protect the information of over 1 million people with a minimum of 7 million pieces of information. The costs of all of this would be a minimum of half a million pounds. That's assuming I get the bare minimum of requirements fulfilled.

Never in the history of mankind has there ever been a physical petition of 300 thousand or more signatures, ever.

A new exercise in democracy? Somehow I doubt it. Somehow, anybody with half a mind would doubt it.

THE LAST RIGHTS & EU REGULATIONS

UKIP MEP Mike Nattrass has today expressed his concern at an EU ban on people being allowed their final wish, to be cremated in a football shirt.

An EU directive preventing people from being cremated in normal clothes has been attacked by the MEP who believes the move removes the rights of the dying, the dead and those that are grieving.

The directive means the deceased may have to be cremated in natural fibre shrouds if local authorities follow Kirklees Council, in Huddersfield, and introduce the ban to reduce crematorium emissions.

Deceased children may no longer be allowed to be cremated with their favourite toys as a result of this directive which could cause further distress to mourning families.

Mr Nattrass said: “The EU doesn’t seem happy with just taking away freedom and choice from the living – it seems it also wants to dictate to the dead.

“I believe this EU directive is contemptible and shows no regard for people’s final wishes.

“The EU introduces 75 per cent of our laws in Britain and we pay £40 million a day to be told how we should live. Now it appears the EU is even trying to control us when we have suffered a bereavement and also when we have passed away ourselves.

“We should say NO to the EU and make our own laws in Westminster,” he added.

EU animal testing plans are a scandal and total disgrace

UKIP lead MEP candidates, Mike Nattrass & Nikki Sinclaire.

West Midlands UKIP MEP Mike Nattrass has called on the EU to slap a complete ban on the use of primates and any other animals in experiments. The UKIP MEP has bitterly attacked appalling EU moves to water down rules on animal experiments which cause severe prolonged suffering.

Mr Nattrass believes the European Parliament should be ethical and vote against the revision of EU rules thus protecting animal rights. He said: "I am totally against the use of primates or any other animals in experiments and will be voting against the revision of Directive 86/609 unless this includes a total ban on the use of primates in experiments.

"I have been involved in animal protection for many years and was first to sign the anti bullfighting 'Bull' in the European Parliament. I also signed against the cruel bear bile farming and against long distance transport of animals for slaughter."

"Entry into the European Union has proved to be about political domination in every area of our lives. Surly the use of primates in experiments is a matter for our Parliament and not unknown people hiding in Brussels."

"The EU now makes 75 per cent of our laws. It is time we said enough is enough. UK law should be made in Westminster and these laws should suit the UK not the 'one size fits all' European Union."

"If experiments must continue then let us see the justification. If those who do these things to living creatures are made aware of the powerful feelings to defend these lives then perhaps they will be less gung ho and show more respect."

Rejection will show those who experiment on apes and other intellegent beings, that there are many people who feel that each individual case must be justified at the very least.

The European Parliament will vote on the proposal in May.

Free Christmas ride home for EU workers

The European Union’s institutions in Brussels are squandering millions of Pounds of British taxpayers’ money by paying for their employees’ Christmas travel expenses at a time of economic crisis.

Hans-Peter Martin, an independent member of the European Parliament from Austria, wrote to the press denouncing this “shocking privilege.”

“The money would be better spent financing meaningful social projects,” Martin wrote.

Last year, the European Commission and the European Council jointly spent just under 47 million Euro (USD 65 million dollars) to pay for the Christmas travel arrangements of their 22,800-odd employees. Once a year, EU employees are given a lump sum covering their travel arrangements. The amount varies according to how far they need to go to reach their country of origin. The payment also covers their espouses and children, and no receipts need to be submitted, as long as the travelling takes place within the EU.

A spokeswoman for the commission said her office had already addressed such concerns to MEPs in February. “Like most international organisations or foreign services in the (EU’s) member states, the Commission pays staff a travel allowance once a year. This is foreseen in staff regulations,” said Valerie Rampi of the commission’s administrative unit.

Rampi said the amount spent by the commission, which employs about 20,000 people, totaled 42 million Euros in 2007, with the remaining amount being paid out by the council. This works out at about 2,100 Euro per employee. Any changes to the rule, in place since 2002, would have to be proposed by the Commission and approved by EU governments, and what do you think the chances of that is ?