New EU legislation since 1st July approaches 10% of all British laws since 1497

UKIP Leader Roger Knapman MEP said that there had been 2,072 legislative instruments issued by the European Commission in the past 3 months, all of which have the force of law in Britain. By comparison, he said that the British Parliament at Westminster has passed 25,271 public acts since 1497, the earliest year for which the House of Lords archive holds records.

Mr Knapman said that at this rate the Commission would have exceeded 20% of all laws passed by the British parliament in the last 508 years by Christmas, and would surpass the total by 2008.

He continued, "This rather sets into perspective the cancellation of 68 EU directives last week. The reality is that the citizens of Europe are facing a torrent of restrictive, illiberal legislation the like of which has never before been seen.

"Blair’s pledge to reduce EU regulation was in line with almost every other pledge this government has made: it was not worth the paper it was written on". ENDS

Notes to Editors:

Since 1st July, the European Commission has introduced 2,072 legislative instruments according to the Official Journal of the European Union. There were 962 EU directives and regulations, and a further 1,110 other legislative instruments.

Since 1497, the earliest year for which the House of Lords Archive holds records, the British parliament has passed 25,571 public acts.

Rather than clog e-mail inboxes, a 217 page document which lists nothing but the titles and numbers of EU legislative instruments since 1st July is available from the UKIP Press Office on request.

For further information, please contact:
Roger Knapman MEP, UKIP Leader,
Mark Croucher, UKIP Press Office, 0207-222-9365 or 07960-584161