On September 29th I compared Europe to a sinking ship. Well, the ship is still afloat and the euro remains, though at an extremely high cost to all of us and I don’t just mean financially.

Many issues arose during the course of the last week, not least the question of a referendum on our continued membership of the EU. Most people, so opinion polls reveal, desire a referendum though they are unlikely to get one. Opponents of a referendum argue that since we elected our MPs to lead us we should just let them get on with it and do their job without interference in the knowledge that if we don’t like them we can vote them out at the next election. A good point, but the problems now facing us are without precedent.

In 1975 we were asked if we wanted to be part of the Common Market, basically a European trading group, and most of us said yes since the benefits of free trade were clear for all to see. We were never asked whether we wanted to be a part of a European Union which of course is what that Common Market has developed into. Over the years we have seen a relentless loss of sovereign power with further losses to follow if  Mr Sarkozy and Ms Merkel get their way. Isn’t about time therefore, that at the very least, we had a free and open debate on what is undoubtedly the greatest issue any of the post-war generations have ever faced?

Mr Cameron has shown this week that he doesn’t favour a debate on Europe and the fact that nearly 90 MPs defied a three line whip seems to show that he has underestimated both his party’s and his country’s concern at what is happening in Europe.

I don’t know the answer to all of this, but what I do know is that if the idealists who govern Europe are allowed to proceed without check then pretty soon the United Kingdom as we know it will disappear into a United States of Europe and no amount of peaceful debate will bring it back. Is there nobody who can provide us with strong leadership and stand up for our country?