The Campaign for an Independent Britain (CIB) opposes regional government in the form currently being proposed i.e. based on the division of England into eight regions which coincide with the European Commission's map of the regions of the European Union.  The suspicion is that these regions will eventually be directly answerable to the European Institutions, thus bypassing the Westminster Parliament and further debasing its importance and authority.  

The ultimate aim is to eliminate nation states and create, instead "a country called Europe" and the elected regional assemblies would simply be small cogs in this vast new European Empire.  The europhiles claim that this will give more power to local people but that really cannot be true.  For instance, how would a regional assembly based in Cambridge or Ipswich have any understanding of the needs of people living in Bedfordshire?  They most certainly could not compete with the local knowledge and experience available at Bedfordshire County Council.  Yet it is the county councils that are most threatened by the regionalisation agenda.

CIB has produced a number of leaflets on this subject, most notably 'Divide and Conquer', which has recently been revised and updated.  Such is its popularity with activists that it is already being re-printed.  Our members have also organised major demonstrations outside of various meetings designed to promote, usually very one-sidedly, the regional agenda.  In many cases CIB members have actually been able to infiltrate these meetings and make sure that the case against regional assemblies is heard.

In addition, I have made a number of speeches in the House of Lords questioning the Government's policy and behaviour on this issue.  In particular the appalling way the responses from the public 'consultation' were handled.  CIB's Vice Chairman, Lord Pearson of Rannoch has also tackled the same subject on several occasions.

I have had some considerable experience of local government having been the Leader of Reading County Borough Council and I know that the best way to improve local government is to revitalise our existing structures not undermine and then abolish them in favour of a form of long distance local government that is anathema to us all.

I shall continue to speak out against the regionalisation of our country  and CIB will continue to be a thorn in the side of those who are intent upon breaking Britain up into Europeanised chunks.

Lord Stoddart of Swindon is an Independent Labour Peer, former MP for Swindon and former Lord Commissioner of the Treasury.  He is the Chairman of the Campaign for an Independent Britain, the all-party movement, which campaigns for British withdrawal from the EU.  He also Chairs the Anti-Maastricht Alliance. 

To visit the Campaign for an Independent Britain Website please click here CIB