The Edmondson Blog

I'm disgusted to read that there are plans to change the test on the inside cover of British passports. Every time I'm queuing amongst the chaos of Ryanair check-in at Stansted, my mind is put at rest by the coat of arms and message from the Queen, reminding me that I have the right to travel freely and have the right to protection and assistance.

Under new changes, however, it has been suggested that the coat of arms are scrapped and replaced by the EU emblem of 12 stars with the message underneath reading: "Every citizen of the Union".

Nobody really expects that if you were hanging by your ankles in a Thai prison being beaten to within an inch of your life for insulting your new bride, you could wave your passport in front of the sadist guard's face and he'd apologise, let you down, and you'd be back in SW6 in time for afternoon tea.

But I do hope that the simple text is a contract between myself and HM Government, that, as a tax paying citizen of this country, if I do get myself into a spot of bother abroad, I could call on the services of the local consulate. And I'd rather trust them than some faceless local EU bureaucrat. LEAVE IT ALONE!