Sir: Mrs Patricia McLaughlin, (letters, 6 March) in advocating British
membership of the Com- mon Market, states that 'Britain alone has little influence'. On the contrary, there are very few cqun- tries in the world whose influence is more widespread than Britain's. Our policies are the direct concern of a whole host of other countries as diverse as Canada, the West Indies, Zambia, India and Austra- lia. Why, at Singapore recently, about thirty different countries made it only too clear that they were very personally concerned with a policy of selling arms to South Africa.
If we join the Common Market, we will substitute that worldwide influence (which, however, is ex- ercised without any loss of an independence) for such influence as we can manage to exercise as a member of a European committee. Our policies will be subject to the veto of our fellow members of the committee and, even if we per- suade our fellow-members to agree with us, the decisions will be theirs, not ours.
Can Mrs McLaughlin really as- sert that the EEC has more in- fluence in the world today than Britain has? Unlike Britain, it has virtually no personal connec- tion with the far corners of the world and no experience in deal- ing with them.
D. A. Young Oxford and Cambridge University Club, Pall ,Mall, London swl
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