Mr Brown, Defender of the British Taxpayer

Grabber Gordon is often portrayed in sections of the British press as a Eurosceptic. In a sense they may be right, but not in the normally accepted sense of the word. He is like a Macho ready to guard the honour of his womenfolk, all the better to be able to beat them at home. He defends his sole right to rip off and impoverish the British Taxpayer, from outside usurpers.

Gordon Brown dug in against Brussels last night, in an attempt to preserve his Budget sums from having a huge hole blown in them by the potential loss of the British rebate from the European Union.

Which shows exactly where his priorities lie. The story is not about trying to cut government spending. The sums of money involved would employ a few tens of thousands of "something or other coordinators" in some god forsaken quango or other. Whilst I hope that Britain can retain its rebate, that wish is for more fundamental reasons than to maintain the tax and waste policies of Britain’s most irresponsible chancellor.