Madam,

May I tell Alan MacMaster (‘We will have £170m a week more to spend after Brexit’) how the European Commission actually works?

The commission is the civil service of the union. It cannot make laws.

It constantly reviews trends in the social, financial, political and other movements within the community and advises the parliament on ways that these movements can be directed to the benefit of all the citizens of the community.

The commission is headed by commissioners appointed by the individual governments of the member states.

If the commission makes any proposal for new laws, these proposals are put to the parliament for debate; if parliament doesn’t like the proposal, it is returned to the commission for reconsideration.

The European Parliament is elected by constituencies in the countries of the union: there is no second unelected chamber, as there is in the UK.

Here in the UK, we have

a government elected by only 37 per cent of the votes, which gave them 51 per cent of the seats. Sixty-three per cent of the voters did not want a Conservative government.

And we have a second chamber, totally unelected, to oversee the Commons. And because of the Parliament Act we cannot change the government until five years have passed, giving them plenty of time to wreck everything we hold most dear.

Which of these two arrangements is the most democratic?

It is a pity that there isn’t a union for immigrant labour; if there were, perhaps they could call a two-day strike and we could see how much we depend on our immigrants.

Oh, and lastly, has Mr MacMaster taken into account the several billions of pounds our farmers get every year under the Common Agricultural Policy?

Yours etc,

Chris West, Brithdir.

Have your say on the local issues affecting you - email [email protected] or join in the conversation on our Facebook page