My former parliamentary colleague Douglas Carswell, a charming, bright and able man, has defected to Ukip. His dramatic move is not to be ignored, although it's regrettable, as he, I and other like-minded Tory MPs have done so much to push and persuade the Prime Minister to hold an in/out referendum on the EU. This has been promised in 2017 should we win the next election. It is highly unlikely that Ukip will form the next government, although strange things do happen! So why defect to another Party when something we have fought so hard to get is within sight? I know that Mr Carswell has always wanted clarity on this issue and of course Ukip is sworn to withdrawing us from the EU, so now he can speak his mind, without any inhibitions or worries about Party loyalty. I respect Mr Carswell's views on the EU and I, too, feel we have no choice but to leave, as we will never be able to repatriate our powers, whatever politicians might say. The EU continues to be the elephant in the room, the elephant that dominates virtually everything we do in this country, and until we deal with it, once and for all, the topic will continue to cause political upheavals like today's.