Well now that the thread has gone beyond Keith 's shaky history and we have a right wing government for the last few years bound by the social chapter, (not opted out any more, despite Keith's insistence) we see the main reason the Conservative party are all anti Europe (apart from their own leader oddly enough.)

Membership of a union that requires a level playing field where possible means giving people rights.

In any progressive society this is a good thing and it is up to trade and commerce to accommodate the social infrastructure, as we cannot have one without the other. We need to afford a welfare state and not see either trade and commerce as the spawn of the devil nor a welfare state as an imposition.

On balance, and despite my cringing on his behalf when you see him debating, Ed Balls is the only potential Chancellor who speaks ad if he realises this. Osborn sees small government as the way forward, which would be fine if we were a strong nation where everybody works for top money and saves up a proportion to look after themselves in later life.

Funnily enough, the communities that in the whole have a responsible attitude to caring for their elder relatives are the ones Farage, Daily M*il, Terribulus and bar room bigots dismiss as immigrant spongers.

Having spent time regulating residential social care, it seems to me that granny dumping is a traditional British sport enjoyed by the types of people Farage and Cameron seem to attract.