A new myth being created

It has long been the tactic of Eurosceptics to continuously repeat untrue stories on the ground that if you say them enough times, people will begin to believe them.

From silly stories (such as the EP legislating that all bananas be straight) to more sinister ones (that ratifying the Lisbon Treaty would lead to armed foreign police patrolling British streets), no opportunity, no matter how far-fetched, is missed to portray the EU as an 'evil Empire'.

A new one is that the European Parliament has decided to "to silence dissenting MEPs", reported in several newspapers which took at face-value the claims of Farage and Hannan to that effect.

According to Private Eye, this even led to a member of the audience at a recent lecture at the LSE by President Pottering to shout out, "you disciplined MEPs for showing dissent and claimed that dissent is not acceptable." Private Eye itself referred to Pottering as "a man who bullied dissenters when they protested against the Charter of Fundamental Rights".

This really is case of breathtaking cheek. The "dissenters" were those who tried to prevent the Portuguese Prime Minister from making a speech in the Parliament. When as in any Parliament, the Speaker or President takes action to prevent such anti-democratic behaviour, it is not bullying, but protecting Parliament from bullies!

Note that the speaking and voting rights of these members were not removed, and they have their say in all debates, as the European Parliament, which contains members with a very wide range of views as it is elected by proportional representation, allocates the bulk of speaking time to each and every political grouping in proportion to its size before finishing with a "catch the eye" free debate. The variety of positions expressed is greater than in most national parliaments.

To try and portray those who shouted down an elected Prime Minister as martyrs of democracy is both spurious and wilfully misleading. It's a shame that the normally excellent Eye chose to print a piece that even the most eurosceptic tabloid would turn its nose up at.