Voters demand EU referendum if David Cameron becomes PM
The Tories have come under fierce pressure on Europe as a poll shows that 70 per cent of voters want a Conservative government to offer a referendum on the Lisbon Treaty, even if it is already law when they come to power.
So far, the Tories have made only vague promises not to 'stand idly by' if the treaty has already become law across the EU
An ICM survey for The Sunday Telegraph also found that 40 per cent want Britain to leave the European Union altogether, a higher percentage than in other recent polls.
Asked which of the four leading member states did best out of EU membership, 43 per cent said France while 25 per cent chose Germany. Britain was selected by 10 per cent, followed by Italy on eight per cent. Even among voters who identify more with Labour than with any other party, 64 per cent want the Conservatives, if elected, to offer a referendum on the treaty, which will establish an EU president and further entrench the decision-making powers of Brussels.
So far, the Tories have made only vague promises not to “stand idly by” if the treaty has already become law across the EU when they win power. However, David Cameron’s efforts to play down the issue take a further blow today as Edward McMillan-Scott, the senior Conservative MEP expelled from the party last week, accuses the Opposition leader in an interview with The Sunday Telegraph of trying to “smear” his name.
Meanwhile, Labour divisions were also highlighted with Gisela Stuart, a former minister who helped to draw up the treaty’s original blueprint, warning that ratifying Lisbon across the EU would create a “democratic deficit”.
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You will not be given a choice - it's above your pay grade.
ReplyDeleteAs the election draws near, I expect UKIP, LPUK and EngDem support will grow. The more so if Cameron keeps up his ludicrous "we won't let matters rest there" mantra.
ReplyDeleteBefore the end of the year, the fate of the Lisbon Treaty will be sealed. The Irish will have voted and pressure will be brought to bear on the Czechs. Unless the EU cooks up some dastardly blackmail plot, I believe the Czechs will decide not to ratify.
Then there's Germany. The German Constitutional Court put up a fierce fight and while they agreed that the Treaty could be ratified if their Parliament was fortified by a bill which would give Germany the power to veto power grabs from the EU, that bill has yet to be ratified.
In any case, that bill would be at odds with the spirit of the Lisbon Treaty which explicitly claims its authority overrides that of member states!
Interesting times. It's somewhat ironic that Germany, being one of the main proponents of "ever closer union", is one of the only three states which have yet to ratify!
Spider,
ReplyDeleteThis is what I'd like to see happen with regard to the UK-EU relationship:
http://conservativehome.blogs.com/platform/2009/06/jonathan-delaney-how-british-rejection-of-the-european-security-and-defence-policy-could-lead-to-fun.html
Thanks for the visits and comments, I've added you to my blogroll.
The way "Call me Dave" is so vague about anything doesn't give me a great deal of hope that he'll give way on this. I suspect he's crapping himself at the thought of the treaty not being ratified and that he'll actually be forced into giving the people a say in their future. It goes totally against his political grain.
ReplyDeleteI'm another who would like to see Cameron take a stronger line and debate the EU issue with voters. If he's scared of that, there isn't much chance of him facing up to the EU with any confidence. That was a good article Track O'Crat, thanks for the link.
ReplyDeleteMy guess would be if the Irish ratify it next week, then he's got a tailor made excuse that there's nothing he can do, as the ghastly treaty will already been delivered before he tastes power. That's why he's deathly silent on the subject.
ReplyDeleteIf the Irish vote no, then it gets interesting. Nobody will believe a single word that New Labour scum utter on the subject, but it would be virtually impossible for Cameron to refuse, even though he's aware of what the result would be, before he even bothered to ask.
I will believe it when I see it, but even the chance of a referendum to leave the EU or tell the Euro to fuck off will give people of the UK some sense of hope and direction.
ReplyDeleteThe next general election will be a referendum about the publics view on Europe.
Labour must be bricking their toilets.
In my opinion, a vote for Lib-Lab-Con is a vote for the status quo as far as the EU goes.
ReplyDeleteMy vote is going elsewhere.
Correct, Scunnert, but there is an opportunity for pressure to be brought to bear from the proper sources - he hasn't been elected, yet, and he knows it. It's not entirely in the bag!
ReplyDeleteYou're right, Fausty, the "we won't let matters rest there" mantra, is not only weak, it's meaningless. I rather tend to believe, for exactly the same reasons you've stated, and also from that excellent Dan Hannan video that you posted that Cameron will still need to grow a pair come election time as Lisbon will not be completely ratified. As well as that, the Irish may still surprise us - they resent being treated as eejits!!
ReplyDeleteGreat link, Track-A-'Crat, thanks for that. And thanks, also, for adding me to your blogroll, it's much appreciated.
ReplyDeleteTotally agree, QM, he's hoping the Irish sort this out for him, but as I said in my reply to Fausty, he very well may not get away with it as easily as he would like!
ReplyDeleteHe's just another career politician when it all boils down, GV, he should have been all over Labour and the EU by now but it's left to people like Dan Hannan and Nigel Farage who actually have the courage to speak out. If you've ever received an email from the Conservatives, they still talk to us as if we were children, incapable of understanding "grown-up" English. I can't say I find that encouraging!
ReplyDeleteThat's what we're all hoping for, D&C, but even then, as Dan Hannan says, it should NOT be all over, no matter how much Cameron wishes it was!! The Irish voting "yes" doesn't finish the ratification process.
ReplyDeleteEven Cameron must be starting to realise that is the case, VotR, and that he can't just ignore it, no matter how much he'd like to.
ReplyDeleteAs far as I'm concerned, Gigits, I totally understand your point of view but I don't think that we have a viable alternative at the moment. I would dearly love to see Nigel Farage or Dan Hannan as PM but that isn't going to happen this time around - so the best thing we can do is be certain of Labour's demise and consignment to the dustbin of history.
ReplyDeleteThe referendum is the only way to deal a body blow to Brussels. It must be done.
ReplyDeleteI couldn't agree more, Nickie, the Lisbon Treaty is the end for any hope of a return to democracy in Britain.
ReplyDeleteI really hope that the conservatives win. I also hope that the Tories decide to break off from the EU. Maybe, this will bring common sense back to Britain? I hope so.
ReplyDeleteThe Czechs appear to be delaying the ratification of the treaty until after the UK general election. We may get our referendum after all.
ReplyDeleteIt would certainly be a good first step, Teresa, I'd love to leave the EU completely. Norway resisted joining and it hasn't done them any harm, in fact, surveys continually show that Norwegians have the happiest lifestyle in Europe!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the link, QM, that was a bloody good read and it's made my day!
ReplyDeleteLooks like we are going to have to fight for it, Teresa.
ReplyDelete