The cost of Blair's failed bid to become EU President

The Telegraph reports figures from the Office of National Statistics that show the Euro-denominated British contribution to the parasitic kleptocracy in Brussels increased from £5.3billion in 2009 to £9.2 billion last year. On top of that the pound has devalued against the Euro, and the UK Treasury has also had to support bail-outs for Ireland and Greece in support of the Euro.

Stephen Booth of Open Europe said: "We’re now starting to see the full effect of Tony Blair’s 2005 decision to give up a huge chunk of the British rebate. As a consequence, British taxpayers’ contributions to the EU have escalated dramatically and are expected to go on rising. At a time when the Government is trying to cut national spending, it makes no sense to increase our contributions to a bloated EU budget that is in desperate need of reform".

Add in the legal bonanza created by the British Human Rights Act, which gold-plated the 1950 European Human Rights Convention for the benefit of human rights hustlers Matrix Chambers and its leading star Cherie Blair, QC, and the cost of EuroBlairdom is getting on for being greater even than his more successful effort to win a pay-off from the Americans by joining in the attack on Iraq. 

To cap it all, our current Prime Prat fancies himself the "Heir of Blair". We're doomed, I tell you, doomed.

P.S. Whoa! Soothscribe Richard North pounds "Tory Boy" Booth in this post, citing EC figures to come up with gross figures of €11.42 billion for 2009, €12.92 billion for 2010 and €13.13 billion in 2011- respectively £10.04 billion, £11.36 billion and £11.54 billion at the current exchange rate.

The fact that the current gross contribution is increasing roughly in line with the general increase in the EU budget is a testament both to the need for the [Blair agreed] adjustment and its success. It is one that, had the Tories headed the administration, they would have agreed as well [?]. As it stands the UK correction [rebate] in the 2010 budget still amounts to around €4.0 billion. The real issue, therefore, is not the rebate, but the fact that we are making payments of £11.54 billion to the EU. This is happening under the current administration, led by the Tories.

I don't know what to make of that, other than to humbly suggest that it resembles the spirited debate alleged to have taken place among 19th century clerics about how many angels could dance on the head of a pin. Of course the Tories will seek to blame Labour - it's called adversarial politics, and anyway the EU is their and the Coalition's third rail. Surely any contribution, no matter from what source, that attacks the alleged economic benefits of belonging to the EU should be welcome?