QUESTION: how many levels of government does it take to run a small country like Wales?

Answer, six, we have the town council, the county council, the Welsh Assembly, The Houses of Commons and Lords and the E.U.

This must be some sort of world record.

I live in Chepstow, which at the moment is in Wales, so the tax and council tax  I pay, has to support 15 town councillors, 43 county councillors, 60 Welsh Assembly members, 40 Westminster MPs (for Welsh constituencies) and four MEPs. Plus any number of peers of the realm.

The salary for a Westminster MP is £74,000, an Assembly member is £64,000 and an MEP is £78,000. Added to this, my tax has to fund their expenses and pensions.

Also I have to pay the salaries, expenses and pensions of those councillors in local government, of town and county.

New research by the Taxpayers’ Alliance has found that expenses alone to be a staggering £699 million nationwide, over the last three years.

My own county councillors have recently been criticised for increasing their expenses budget, while cutting other services.  Talk about looking after number one.

Don’t even ask me what I have to pay to support our peers, it will only upset me.

As you can see, all this is a large amount of money for an OAP like me to find.

The debate on the EU referendum has brought to light just how much government we need and how much we can afford.

Because of this I have decided to vote leave in the EU referendum, because I want less government not more.

My decision has nothing to do with open borders or trade but good old Labour values like democracy and accountability.

In doing this, I know I will be siding with some very right wing politicians but I will just have to stomach this.  

I feel that Jeremy Corbyn has let me down in his support of the stay campaign. Tony Benn and Michael Foot would turn over in their graves.

I also believe that the Welsh Assembly should be abolished, and intend to vote as such in the upcoming  elections.

Let’s make our Westminster MPs earn their inflated salaries and remove this local help that they get.

Why should others get paid to do their jobs for them?

My advice to my English friends is: never let the powers-that-be devolve power to  your regions, it just creates another bunch of career politicians to pay for.

– Old Labour, Bulwark.

Editor’s note: Town councillors (in Wales) and parish councillors (in England) receive no salary.