Good comment. Responsible politicians shouldn& #39;t adopt this core tactic of Europhobia ie whereby problems aren& #39;t just problems to which we need to find a solution; instead every problem is framed as an existential challenge playing for ultimate stakes https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/apr/23/coronavirus-delivers-a-moment-of-truth-on-the-meaning-of-the-eu?CMP=share_btn_tw">https://www.theguardian.com/world/202...

Imagine if every time we disagreed with a government policy or decision, we immediately questioned the underlying legitimacy & indeed the very existence of the entire state. Yet the influence of Europhobia means that& #39;s exactly the pattern we see over and over again with the EU...

& what makes it more frustrating? A big part of the very purpose of the EU is to help find solutions to problems that countries can& #39;t solve alone; indeed, to problems that often have no solution, but rather need to be managed over time / their impacts minimised as best we can

Benchmark for evaluation shouldn& #39;t be: has the EU solved this major problem / crisis completely & to everyone& #39;s satisfaction? That& #39;s often an impossible ask. Real question is usually: has it made a positive contribution compared to what the state could have achieved acting alone?

Bearing in mind (which again, the arch-detractors usually deliberately don& #39;t): the EU is not a state, it is an international organisation; it has only limited legal & policy competences & tools; it depends entirely on cooperation & trust with & between its Member States to work.