Those of you who study these ramblings will by now have come to understand that one of the things that gets to me is the UK`s membership of the European Union. I`m all for free trade and having good, friendly relations with our continental brothers and sisters (especially the sisters) but I have grown increasingly tired of the UK chucking £40million a day of taxpayers` money into the black hole of the EU`s finances. I`m not sure what we get for our money except seemingly an increasing interference with things that affect our daily lives, a largely unelected, remote, self-serving bureaucracy that is so out of touch with those who pay for it, a refusal to display any semblance of democratic integrity, a penchant for making up the rules as it goes along, an arrogance which produces its own flag, anthem and illusory clubbiness and an inability to have its accounts signed off for more years than anyone can remember. Apart from that, it`s ok.

So I have always been on the lookout for those who speak up against the EU`s flagrant profligacy and sense of self importance and one such has been Nigel Farage of the UK Independance Party and MEP for the south east of England. But I`m afraid he overstepped the mark in the week, when in the EU Parliament he referred to the newly appointed EU President, Herman van Rompuy, the well know Belgian, as having `the charisma of a damp rag and the appearance of a low grade bank clerk.` Now, even given that such description might just chance to have a degree of accuracy about it and given also that van Rompuy was elected President of 500million people without them having any say in his appointment, Farage`s farrago lost him any credibility he may have had as a serious politician when he descended into his personal van Rompuy rant.

It seems that Farage is going to stand as a Parliamentary candidate in the next UK General Election for the seat of Buckingham, for which the current bizarre Speaker of the House of Commons, John Bercow, is the sitting member. Apart from having a little sympathy for van Rompuy, given the choice which awaits them I`m beginning to feel distinctly sorry for the good folk of Buckingham.