When the well publicised vote took place on the Amendment to the Queens Speech Roger voted for the Amendment which had been put down which regretted the fact that the Government had not included in the Queens Speech proposals for a Referendum on whether Britain stayed for left the European Union. Explaining his position Roger said: “For far too long the people of this country have not been given a chance to express their views on the massive changes which have taken place in the European Union since the last Referendum was held back in 1975.
Britain originally joined a ‘common market’ which was essentially a group of countries operating a free trade
area but ever since Mrs. Thatcher brought forward the Single European Act in 1986 (which she subsequently said was a mistake) there has been a constant transfer of powers from member states to the unelected European Commission in Brussels.
I have consistently argued that trying to create a United States of Europe by stealth was not in the best interests of Britain but the warnings made by myself and others have been ignored by those in Britain and Europe who see the creation of a Federalist United States of Europe as the fulfilment of their ‘project dream’. The attempt to bind countries together through the single currency has had disastrous consequences for many of the member states. This was just another example of attempts to moves towards a federalist super state.
The people of the United Kingdom are not daft. They know perfectly well that they have not been told the truth about Europe, nor about the attempts to create a European super state by stealth, and because they have not been given the chance of having a direct say their resentment has gradually built up and was a major contributory factor in why UKIP did as well as it did in the last local elections.
There is an argument for why individual national sovereignties should be submerged into a European super state. I do not share this argument but it is a valid one to make and there needs to be a proper

debate in the country about this and for the people to be given the final decision through a Referendum.
That is the reason why I voted, along with 11 other Labour MPs for the Amendment on Wednesday night and I welcome the fact that there now seems to be real momentum behind the calls for a Referendum to take place. Bring it on say I.”

This article appeared in the May edition of Roger's newsletter 'Postcard from Parliament'