D E Margrett stated in his letter of Saturday, June 25, that "the EU is finished" as a result of the French and Dutch rejections of the Constitutional Treaty.

What a pity this isn't true. Chirac, Schroeder, Blair, Barroso and other European "leaders" have all steadfastly refused to declare even the Constitutional Treaty dead let alone the EU itself, this being despite the Treaty containing a caveat that it must be ratified by all 25 member countries or by definition it ceases to exist.

It has even been stated that "certain elements" of the Constitutional Treaty will be adopted anyway, irrespective of the will of the people. Clearly, EU rules mean nothing, they are only adhered to when it suits the political leadership, and referenda are only regarded as valid when the "correct" answer is attained.

So the monstrous EU lives on. The French will continue to exult the benefits of the Common Agricultural Policy because they are the main beneficiaries of it, and they'll continue to call the UK "pathetic" for daring to suggest that reform may be necessary.

In the meantime, the UK's borders will continue to be stretched to somewhere near the old Soviet Union and we'll continue to hand over billions of pounds a year to Brussels.

In a recent pan European survey, 65 per cent of respondents stated that they would either be "pleased" or "indifferent" if the EU ceased to exist, therefore only 35 per cent positively want this ill-conceived pact to continue.

What a pity the EU leadership hasn't got the strength of character to call for an EU-wide referendum on the continued existence of the union, but then again, turkeys don't vote for Christmas.

GARY WEBB, Worcester.