letter to the editor from Richard Corbett MEP |
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12th April 2008 |
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The Express |
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Dear Editor, Frederick Forsyth is a great writer of fiction but he shouldn't carry it forward into what purports to be a factual article (April 11th). Jean Monnet never said: “Europe's nations should be guided towards the superstate without their people understanding what is happening. This can be accomplished by successive steps, each disguised as having an economic purpose but which will eventually and irreversibly lead to federation.” The Jean Monnet Foundation, which holds archives of all of his work, confirm that he never said anything of the sort, a fact that most Eurosceptics now accept. Indeed, the Jean Monnet Foundation, provides a quote which states the exact opposite. Speaking to the Council of Europe in 1953 he 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. " By continuing to push this lie about Monnet, Frederick Forsyth is doing little to contribute to an informed, mature debate about the EU.
Richard Corbett Labour MEP for Yorkshire & Humber
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