TO join the European single currency would be madness. For centuries Britain has enjoyed democratic government almost unique in the world for its probity.

That civic virtue is in marked contrast to some other European countries where public corruption is the norm. For years European nations such as Italy, Greece and France have ignored European laws whenever it suited them to do so.

But the real problem is not the way EU regulations are obeyed or disobeyed but rather the torrent of directives pumped out by a remote and un-elected Brussels.

Again and again regulations are foisted on this country against the interests and consent of the British people. The worst scandal of all is that many of these directives emanate from the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), that bloated monstrosity which breeds inefficiency and corruption and which compels British families to pay £20 extra a week for food while leaving many British farmers in penury.

MRS JEAN ALLISON,

Ramsbottom.