Following the Prime Minister’s statement to the House of Commons on our contributions to the EU, Anne Main forcefully made the point that this money should be spent in the UK.

Anne went on to question the PM on how the figures on the shadow economy are calculated and what facts and figures are available to support them.

Mrs Anne Main (St Albans) (Con): My constituents would rather see the £1.7 billion spent on them and their country than on some EU bean counter. Did the Prime Minister manage to get any detail on how the shadow economy, which we are apparently doing so well out of, was calculated? Are there any facts and figures to support that?

The Prime Minister: Complicated calculations are carried out by the Office for National Statistics in the United Kingdom, by EUROSTAT throughout Europe and by the independent statistics organisations of every country. That is why the figures are estimates and why they have to be checked so carefully.

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