Yes but you see, Nigel, your ideology causes you to fail to attend to the actual nuts and bolts of the thing. As I tried to tell you, the Commission is appointed by all the member states. Member states, all fiercely nationalist, are hardly going to appoint a body that has undemocratic ambitions to override their established procedures and they are not going to appoint a body that they think will assume powers beyond their statutory limitations. You might as well say that the UK is an undemocratic superstate because civil servants draw up and suggest legislation (which they do: the average politico wouldn't have a clue. Like to comment on Cummings, for example..? Embarrassing bit of democratic deficit there, n'est-ce pas? Haven't heard you moaning...). But the obstinate fact remains that neither our civil service nor the European Commission, both appointed bodies, has even the slightest executive powers. We are not the USA. Not by a long chalk. Churchill may have mouthed that ambition, but we are no nearer to it even after seventy-five years. That's a comforting thought to those of us who are reasonably accomplished (it doesn't take much) when it comes to cutting through the lies of the leave brigade. Go on, tell us again about that European army that's about to be forced on us. Or that Turkey's about to join the EU...

What was that again about a European superstate...?