So it seems that the Conservatives are rediscovering the value of strong European institutions now that they are confronted with national protectionism in other EU countries. The rise of "economic patriotism" in France and elsewhere, threatening to exclude British businesses that compete with their national champions, has produced a flood of Conservative MEPs calling for stronger action by the Commission to enforce European Single Market rules. Sometimes they even go further. Thus, Phillip Bushill-Matthews tabled a question at question time to the Commission last week, asking:

"Does the Commission have sufficient powers to effectively challenge countries that unilaterally choose to label certain industrial sectors as off-limits because of a declared national interest that is self-defined? Should the EU be granted any further powers in order to take control of this situation and if so what should these be and how should they be advanced?"

It's not long ago that Tory MEPs were moaning about the over powerful Commission interfering in national life. Now they are rushing to strengthen it further.

Interestingly, the same point was made recently by the Daily Telegraph’s European correspondent, David Rennie, in his recent article in The Spectator (11 March, pp20-21). He wrote that “all the current threats to the single market pose a real political dilemma for British Eurosceptics and the Conservative party – indeed for anyone who claims to support free trade and business. There is one mechanism for defending the single market, and it lies with the supranational powers of the European Commission…”