France Radio Club/Offshore Echos Magazine own response:

Ten years ago, when Radio Caroline went silent, France Radio Club / Offshore Echos Magazine contacted a great number of people and organisations connected with the EU.

We asked (as did others from different European countries) two different questions:

• The UK has passed a very controversial piece of legislation condemmed by international shipping organisations and respected marine lawyers. What is the official EU position ?

• Radio Caroline is part of European cultural heritage and must be saved as a free radio station at sea. What can the EU do about this ?

This campaign was very hard and very long. After four years with hundreds of letters, faxes, meetings… Mister Delors, in charge of the European Commission at that time, finally asked us to stop our mails and had nothing to say on the two subjects apart from he had no power to change UK legislation; and that Radio Caroline was a pirate station, so had no rights.

Neverless we received support from individual Euro MPs from many countries and parties.

But support is one thing, reality and efficient result is another :

• The reality is that the EU had no power to offer a broadcasting licence.
• The reality is that EU paid public money to finance an unlicenced offshore station (Radio Brod) and never asked or offered a licence to Radio Brod.
• The reality is EU claimed Radio Caroline to be a "pirate" station on one hand, while the other hand of the EU supported and financed their own "pirate" station!