No, Britain can’t direct Europe. Let’s stop pretending otherwise

Can Britain reorder Europe? When James Forsyth and I interviewed the Prime Minister on Monday we were struck by his line of argument. Yes, he said, seeing the immigration crisis coming straight after the Euro crisis may make voters want out. But this, he said, was an instinctive reaction. There was a better response:-

The longer term reaction might actually be: well if they are going to have a single currency and they are on our doorstep and they are going to try and make it work, let’s make sure our relationship with them works…  If they are going to have a borderless Europe which we’re not part of, for heaven’s sake let’s make sure they have strong external borders.

I look at this in my Daily Telegraph column today: make sure that they have strong external borders? Shape the way they work? We’re back to the noble fantasy, so endemic in the Foreign Office, that Britain can direct Europe.