Gordon Brown spent an hour recently telling Parliament about his deal on the Constitutional treaty. He told us Parliament would have sufficient time to scrutinise this measure, but I and several other MPs were not called to ask our questions, which got the whole notion of adequate time off to a bad start.

He decided to go back to an old and false defence, that 3 million jobs depend on the EU so we should stop arguing and accept gratefully the latest EU take-away.

These famous 3 million jobs are an old estimate of the jobs that create exports for the EU market. It is ludicrous to suggest these jobs are at risk if we demand a better deal or a different relationship with the EU. There are three home truths Brown ignores:

1. The EU sells us more than we sell them. Germany does not want to stop selling us BMWs just because we might demand a better deal over EU governemntal issues. They will not wish to threaten our trade. If they did try to break international trade rules it would mean a boost to activity to replace imports.

2. Our exports to the EU are anyway protected by world trade rules. Is Brown suggesting EU member governemnts would break WTO rules and refuse to accept fines and other enforcement action?

3. Exports mainly depend on willing buyers in the private sectors of EU states. They are not in the gift of the EU or its member governments to welcome or refuse. The big myth of the single market is that it rests on the EU. It rests on willing buyers and willing sellers. The trade from non EU countries has been growing faster with EU member states than internal trade.

So Gordon, if you want to argue an unpopular case in favour of more European government, at least be a bit more imaginative. This old chestnut has long since been burned to a ashes by democratic debate.

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