Lights Out

From today it has become illegal under EU law, to import or manufacture traditional, and popular, incandescent 60 watt light bulbs. Our unelected unaccountable Government, immune from the ballot box, is in effect trying to tell us how to light our own houses. Well that isn't going to happen in my case, in fact I took recent action of removing the only (still working) low energy bulbs I had and throwing them in the non- recycling / landfill bill. I don't think I'm supposed to do that - whoops.

But as Mary Ellen Synon points out there's more to this ban than simply trying to 'save energy':

On offer in their place at the bricolage were light bulbs for five and six times the price but you know about that wheeze. What no once can know is how many millions the electrical goods industry has spent on their lobbying operation here in Brussels to get this change through, and how much they spent on experts to 'help' draft this legislation. The EU has now made it possible for the industry to expect you and me to spend 30 quid on a light bulb.

There are though two unintended consequences for the EU; firstly it will encourage a flourishing black market which I suspect a significant motivation will be two fingers up at the EU and the second, and probably more important, it makes the EU even more visible. Increasingly the EU no longer hides behind national institutions to conceal its power, it instead is becoming more confident of making decisions that can be directly linked to it.

And this is where the faux Eurosceptics are so far behind the curve that even the Hubble telescope would be useless as an aid to help them find it. They can posture all they want, but as the EU continues to integrate - its effects thus becoming more visible - then the Tory increasingly schizophrenic argument of 'in Europe not ruled by it' becomes ever more ridiculous, and obviously so. The Tory so-called Eurosceptics are being left behind as a relevance at a rapid rate.

It won't be the faux Eurosceptics Tories that get us out, nor the dry details of the another European institution power grab but the likes of the humble incandescent light bulb.

Bright Idea?

This is the front page of Conservative Home this morning:

Next to another pointless Tory "we must stand up to Europe" article is a link to a site promoting; "Innovation and improvement in Local Government" which will among other things "discuss the Coalition's government programme for decentralisation".

This link is accompanied by a diagram showing light bulbs presumably to demonstrate 'bright ideas', however they look suspiciously like the traditional incandescent lightbulbs which are banned by....the EU.

The irony appears to be lost on them.

Do As We Say

Despite customer demand for them, the EU has decided that a rather ingenious way of circumnavigating the incandescent light bulb ban is still wrong:

A German man has failed in an attempt to circumvent the EU ban on 100 watt incandescent lightbulbs by rebranding the product as Heatballs.

An EU wide ban on the importation and sale of the powerful bulbs was imposed last year on environmental grounds.

Customs will now seize and destroy 40,000 bulbs imported by Siegfried Rotthäuser must be destroyed.

Mr Rotthäuser had advertised the lightbulbs as a source of heat and the components of a resistance art project.

Ain't EU democracy great, they introduce a law that tells us how to light our houses, that you or I can't change via the ballot box if we disagree (changing my house completely over to low energy bulbs costs nearly £650 because I've got dimmer switches).

Nevermind, not only does it create a black market (more money) but being British there's a wonderful loophole to get around the EU ban. As a result I have a garage stuffed full of pallets containing light bulbs should anyone wish to buy any.

Thanks EU, you're helping to pay my mortgage.

In the Dark

Labour MP Tom Harris, publishes on his blog today, an email from an irate constituent which neatly illustrates Britain's current democratic deficit.

Tom's constituent is clearly not happy about the ban on incandescent 100watt light bulbs (my emphasis bold):

I can’t see a bloody thing. It is dark outside and we have run out of light bulbs that have anything other than a glow. I am stuck with a 60watt bulb in a room with a ceiling that an athlete couldn’t reach. Which bunch of well meaning but utterly misguided idiots decreed that to have 100watt conventional light bulbs was bad?

What idiots indeed? He continues:

Without being too hasty, I promise you my vote if you bring back proper, enlightening, illuminating lightbulbs.

Understandably frustrated and annoyed by the ban, he writes to his MP using his vote as the weapon. But what can Tom do?

The ban is the result of EU Eco-Design of Energy-Using Products Directive, Directive 2005/32/EC. No matter who the constituent votes for, the ban will remain.

Tom, and therefore by default his constituent, have been rendered powerless, and the MP is left with the only solutions of lending out light bulbs, if he had any, and publishing the email on the internet.

What a sad state of affairs!

P.S. I'm not sure what Tom's private response was, but it's notable that he doesn't mention the EU in the post itself, although some of the comments pick this up.