If Britain does indeed vote to leave the European Union in June, it will be in part because the EU loves to lecture sovereign nations while its own institutions are rife with bad behavior:

From politico.com:

DEMOCRACY ABCs: One Member of the European Parliament assistant seems not to understand the basics of parliamentary democracy. The aide emailed the entire Parliament — not to look for missing jewelry or purple pens, the favorite EU spam topics of late — but for someone to hit the voting button on behalf of absent MEP Eva Joly. Instead of thinking to ask members of her own Greens party, the assistant sent an email to every MEP and assistant asking if they’d be willing to vote on behalf of her MEP.


I realize there are examples in the U.S. — from city councils to state legislatures — where elected officials have engaged in similar sordid behavior. But the EU parliament has always claimed to uphold the highest standards of probity. But from expense account pilfering to curbs on free speech to voter fraud, it more resembles the Bastard of All Parliaments.