The European Union, with its origins in Catholic Social Teaching’s ideals of solidarity and subsidiarity, is an organisation that many Catholics instinctively support. But here, a Catholic MP explains why he remains convinced that the UK should vote on 23 June to leave

The referendum on 23 June to decide if the United Kingdom is to remain a member of the European Union will determine the nature of the country. Is the state we belong to Europe or the UK?

The European Union is unlike other international bodies; its laws override domestic ones for all member states; the Court of Justice’s interpretations of its treaties are final as in a federal state and contravention of its law has a legal effect rather than simply a diplomatic one. None of this applies to organisations such as Nato, the United Nations or even the International Cricket Council.

This is not how the EU was first sold to member countries. It was meant to be an alliance of nations, not a super-nation, but over the years it has gained the symbols and powers of a state. The EU has a flag, an anthem, a parliament and several presidents. In many member states, although fortunately not in the UK, the European flag flies alongside the national one on government buildings as the Stars and Stripes flutters alongside state flags in the US. Symbols are important, the more so if they represent an underlying truth.