Renegotiation
Sir Mr Ernst Albert holds that it would be a breach of faith if Parliament used its sovereign power to repudiate the Treaty of Rome, but I would suggest that those who negotiated our treaty of accession on behalf of the EEC were not fools and knew quite well what might happen. If the Community had been producing the desired unity among its members, they would not have endangered that unity by allowing it to be enlarged. Even so, the charge of breach of faith might be perfectly correct but for the nature of the treaty as indicated both by its provisions and the aspirations of its authors. So judged, the treaty is more akin to a federation than to a commercial treaty. Consequently, repudiation of it is an act secession from a federation, a unilateral declaration of independence, rather than the breach of faith which repudiation of an ordinary treaty entails. It would, indeed, be a formal recognition that the supposed unity does not exist.
West Germany, however, has an interest in maintaining this fiction of unity. Through the industry of her people and the wisdom of her statesmen since 1945, she has become the richest and most powerful state in Western Europe. She is a founder member of the EEC and has the best record in observance of the obligations of membership. Because her house is in order and those of Britain, France and Italy are not, she can through the EEC extend her influence among the smaller states of Western Europe. Let her nationals
accept with grace this gift for which, since 1945, she has never asked. It is surely ungracious for Mr Albert to denounce as "an act of international lawlessness" a measure intended to give effect to the national aspirations for continued independence of the British People.
I too would like to have a Parliament which is not quite sovereign (and, for reasons which there is not space to explain here, I think that this is possible) for it has abused its power too often. Repudiation of the Treaty of Rome, however, would be a sensible use of that Power.
D. E. Folkes
5 Queen's Walk, Ealing, London W5
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