who pays the piper calls the tune?

A week ago the Foreign secretary, David Milliband, defended the European Union for having consulted the British people by a dialogue with various worthy organisations. He mentioned the NSPCC, One World Action, Action Aid, Oxfam and "a commission of bishops"

Daniel Hannan in a blog soon afterwards promised to find out if the first four have received any funds from the EU, but he did find out about the august body of bishops. Their full title is Commissions of the Bishops' Conferences of the European Community."

The Bishop's group declare their objectives to be:
to monitor and analyse the political process of the European Union
to inform and raise awareness within the Church of the development of EU policy and legislation
to promote reflection, based on the Church's social teaching, on the challenges facing a united Europe.

Hannan quote another (ecclesiastical) blog site which reports that the Commission is "a Roman Catholic-led ecumenical body which is financed by the European Union to produce reports singing the praises of said union with all glory laud and honour."

The view of such a body is hardly likely to express views of the rank and file citizens of this country.

As for the other four NGOs, Hannan is aware of a meeting in Brussels for 500 "representatives of civil society", most of whom seemed to be EU funded NGOs. He has been in correspondence since with the European Commission, as yet without success, asking which NGOs were receiving EU finance.

If all the bodies concerned are taking the EU "shilling", how valuable are their views? And if Millband and others like him are reduced to quoting them, are there no objective judgements on the EU which are favourable to the Treaty.