The watch worn by Lord Clinton-Davis signals his view of Brexit: it sports the flags of the 13 member- states of the then European Community which he served as British commissioner from 1985 to 1989. The Labour peer, 87, admits that when he set out to Brussels, he was ambivalent about membership of the body, fearing disregard of British concerns. It took him "about two weeks", he said, to change his mind and recognise its value as a forum for co-operation.