THE European Union (EU) has removed the leaders of Greece and Italy, replacing them with technocratic governments (puppet regimes) to do its bidding. Chancellor Merkel, on behalf of the EU, has stipulated that no candidate holding a view that differs from the EU austerity package may stand in the forthcoming Greek general elections.

Then this happened.

All EU laws that govern us have first to be ratified by the European Parliament. This is done by MEPs voting twice a month (at Strasbourg and Brussels).

Voting sessions usually take about one hour during which time (unbelievably) anything up to 200 pieces of legislation are voted on. Many of the votes are cast and recorded electronically and are known as Roll Call Votes (RCV).

We (that's you and me) have a new President in the European Parliament. His name is Martin Schultz. He's German and when speaking glares through his spectacles, punching the air with tight fists.

Schultz is an ardent federalist. For him there is only one solution to all problems: "more Europe".

On the 2nd of February this year Schultz was presiding over a voting session in Brussels.

Suddenly he pointed out that the next dozen or so amendments to a piece of legislation, each of which were to be voted on individually as RCVs, could be lumped together and voted on as a block with just one vote. This would save time.

Uproar in the chamber.

Outraged members pointed out their intention to vote in a variety of ways on the up-coming amendments and one vote could not properly represent their views.

Schultz was unshakeable, one vote would do.

Amongst the furore one member stood up, waving his voting paper, and shouted, "If that's the case, why not have just one vote for the whole bloody lot of this".

Schultz remained unmoved. Imperiously ignoring the mayhem before him, he demanded the vote be taken in the manner he described. It was. The members did as they were told.

Schultz won the day and in so doing revealed the lunacy of the whole voting process.

None of it matters. Everything goes through on the nod. The MEPs have virtually no power and no real influence. That resides with the Commission.

The European Parliament is a sham, a pantomime put on to give the illusion of democracy where none exists. Schultz patently isn't going to waste time pretending that it does.

He has given the lie to those who, self-importantly, preen and strut in this house of hypocrisy.

The MEPs, all of us, are just nodding dogs, pressing our meaningless voting buttons on cue.

In the same way that the EU is flexing its muscles in Greece and Italy, Schultz has signalled an end to any further pretence in Brussels.

From now on, this is how it will be.

Trevor Colman, UKIP MEP for the South West