letter to the editor from Richard Corbett MEP

04 February 2007

Sunday Express

Dear Editor,

I doubt Jimmy Young has ever contacted the Jean Monnet Foundation but had he, he would have found that the quote he repeated in his column last week (January 28), as justification to attack the “arrogance” and “contempt” of the EU, was a complete fabrication.

All of Monnet's work is archived by the Jean Monnet Founation who are more than happy to provide people with a speech he did make to the Council of Europe on March 28 1953 in which he says the complete opposite to Jimmy Young's unreferenced quote.

Monnet said: "Our Community will only develop well if all the measures that it takes are made public, explained publicly not only to the peoples of our Community but also to those who do not belong to it."

Yours,

Richard Corbett

Labour MEP for Yorkshire & Humber
Blenheim Terrace, Leeds