GETTY Tory MEP David Campbell Bannerman warned that the EU are holding back centralising legislation

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And if Britain votes Remain then we will be stuck with them. Among the legislation that is being held back is the imposition of a new “social union” which will enable Brussels to take control of the UK’s welfare state including pensions, benefits and the minimum wage. It is unthinkable that our welfare state – flawed, but still one of post-war Britain’s most radical and remarkable achievements – should be taken from our own parliamentary and democratic control. This sinister development – which will initially affect only the Eurozone – was flagged up in a speech last month by Commissioner Marianne Thyssen.

GETTY It is unthinkable that our welfare state be taken out of our control by the EU

She said: “We present a broad, holistic vision for a future-proof European social model.” This may sound like meaningless bureaucratic jargon but it is clearly something that Britain should have nothing to do with.

We present a broad, holistic vision for a future-proof European social model Marianne Thyssen, European Commissioner

Continuing membership of the EU does not represent a continuation of the status quo as many in the Remain camp would have us believe. If Britain votes to stay in then it is certain that this decision will herald a terrifying increase in Brussels’s interference in our lives, further attacks on our sovereignty and sense of nationhood and the remorseless progress towards an EU superstate. There is one way to avoid this “social union” plot and that is to vote for Brexit. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

GETTY David Cameron wants to appoint Gove and Boris to the cabinet to consolidate his leadership

The price of Tory unity If David Cameron wins the referendum on Britain’s membership of the EU in June it is believed that he will attempt to create a “unity Government” to bring together the divided Conservative Party. It had been predicted that Brexit supporters Boris Johnson and Michael Gove would be punished and hurled into the outer darkness: the back benches. Instead, the Prime Minister appears to be contemplating promotion for both. All this is predicated on the electorate voting to remain in the EU. If, as this newspaper hopes, the vote goes the other way, then the gloves are off. With Tory big-hitters likely to mount a leadership challenge within days of the referendum, Mr Cameron may no longer be able to offer anybody a top job. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

PA The Royals are currently on a tour of India