European Elections June 10th

With the influence of the EU on our everyday life I would have expected that the European Elections would have instigated a real debate amongst the candidate parties. Judging by the election literature delivered to date this is true to some degree, but it is depressing to see concentration by some on unconnected issues such as local income tax and what George Bush is up to, whatever one might think of him.
A General Election cannot be too far away and these issues should obviously be discussed, but at such an election where they are relevant and not used as a distraction from the real and important issues of Europe. But there again if you want to avoid the real issues.......
If a referendum on the European Constitution is held , we must change such thinking and ensure that a proper debate is held. Who knows, engaging with the real issues in such a debate might do something towards increasing turnout.