Nick went with the line that we hear from the pro-EU establishment, including David Cameron, that Britain isn’t big enough to survive on the world stage as a self-governing, independent country. That how could we possibly hope to negotiate our own trade deals? I responded to Nick that this pessimistic mindset was absolutely ridiculous.

I pointed out that we are the fifth largest economy in the world and that Iceland, with a population of 320,000, had just signed a trade deal with China. I said if they were big enough to do this and if Switzerland had more free trade agreements than we did as EU members, I was absolutely certain that we too were big enough to strike these kind of exciting global trade deals outside of the EU.

But then something struck me.

I realised from the tone of Mr Clegg’s voice that what he actually meant was that he didn’t think we were good enough. Our pro-EU political class don’t think we are good enough to make our own laws, run our own country and to act in our own national interest. Rather than the UK negotiating our own trade deals with the interests of this country front and centre, the pro-EU establishment would rather that the EU do it on our behalf.

More here.