WEEK after week letters attacking the European Union appear in newspapers across the North West. Often they go unchallenged simply because too few people feel confident enough to the facts to put the opposite case.

Chris Davies, the Liberal Democrat North West Euro-MP, has been one of the few people to put the counter arguments strongly both in the press and from public platforms. Clearly he was doing his job too well because the UK Independence Party has now refused to debate with him again.

This demonstration of abject cowardice on the part of the anti-Europeans was announced shortly after a public debate between Chris Davies and the Leader of the UK Independence Party. The majority of those who attended were hostile to the Liberal Democrat position, but votes taken both at the beginning and at the end of the meeting showed a clear shift in favour of the arguments we put.

It seems that the UK Independence Party likes to spread its lies and distortions so long as they go largely unchallenged, but as soon as someone stands up strongly against them they run away.

The official reason for their decision is that they think Chris Davies is "unworthy" because he has described as nutters people who say the European Union is a "Jewish Conspiracy" or "Vatican Plot". We can only assume that the UK Independence Party believes such prejudices are worthy of serious consideration.

Neil Derbyshire

Chairman

NW Lib Dems