Sir James Dyson in a call for the UK to return to innovation and manufacturing
Cameron has made the vow that never again would powers be transferred from the UK to Brussels without the consent of the people. This has drawn predictable fire from Europe with the French Minister for Europe, Pierre Lellouche, claiming that the Conservatives will ‘castrate’ UK influence in the EU and that their plan is ‘pathetic’.
The Tories and the EU
Cameron’s vow came quickly after he was forced to revise the party’s stance on Europe post Czechoslovakia’s acceptance of the Lisbon Treaty.
Tory MEP Hannan has resigned as Conservative affairs spokesman to concentrate on bringing direct democracy to the EU but Tory MEP Roger Helmer has resigned in the basis that he cannot support the new Tory position.
This episode does highlight the position the UK (and all other EU countries for that matter) are now in. The EU is a one way ratchet with no release mechanism. There is a whole multi-billion pound operation behind increasing the power of the EU and nothing coherent to counter it. Cameron’s more Eurosceptic stance will definitely strike a chord in the UK, but it may also be an increasingly attractive policy for a lot of people in the wider Europe. Dangerous for the EU project.
It is always tempting to consider that Europe consists of the UK (outside) and anyone over the channel as ‘them’ (inside) and the Europhiles push this picture for all it is worth. Put together with largely un-provable figures on where our trade lies this can be a powerful argument. But I do not believe that the average French or German person is any less nationalistic than the average Brit.
Net EU Contributions-2007
Just like domestic politics are used to redistribute wealth throughout the UK, EU politics are designed to redistribute wealth on a European scale (as can be seen when you look at the list of net contributors v net recipients). But with the EU this is being done without the real will of the person in the street.
With the arrival of a more official and longer lasting EU President (OK, of the Council of Ministers) together with a foreign policy arm, will come the need to subdue nation states individual policies in this area. How could the UK for example be openly at odds with EU foreign policy, especially if the head was a UK national? Could the UK go against EU policy and wage another war on the side of the US for example?
Just as in domestic politics with for example ‘North v South’, we must realise that what is good for the EU is not always good for the UK. We bear the former because we are (just about) democratic in this respect. But as for the latter there is no true democratic process, just agreements drawn up by faceless people and presented to us as a fait accompli. Far from being a latter day Canute, Cameron may actually be playing a long game that gathers support throughout Europe in the coming years. But he may split the Tories along the way.
Tags: cameron, economics, european union, hannan, News, Politics, the eu, tory policy
Cameron’s attitude seems to be that what’s done is done and can’t be undone but no further steps forward will happen without the agreement of the British people.
It’s not enough to earn my vote.
And, by the way, since that position is so simple – hardly a policy at all – why was he unable to say what it would be before Lisbon was ratified? All he had to do was make the previous policy conditional.
I believe Cameron did make the last policy conditional, Brian, by saying that he would re address the issue should the treaty be ratified prior to a UK general election. After all, he only promised a referendum on the treaty, not on the EU as a whole (I wish).
Sorry Jeff, I can’t agree.
He reiterated many times that his policy was to hold a referendum and when asked what happens if Lisbon is ratified he simply said we only have one policy at a time, if Lisbon is ratified before we come to power we’ll announce a new policy.
So many people were hoping that his new announcement would be more Eurosceptic. All he has done is accepted Lisbon and drawn a line in the sand for the future.
I hate Europe (the EU I mean) because of the lack of democracy. I don’t want my voice in Europe in the hands of the British Prime Minister. If Europe is to be a union of Nation states then Lisbon is a treaty too far but if Europe is to be more like a US of Europe we need to cede much more power to the centre and stop regarding national governments as sovereign when they should be just glorified councils. Death by a thousand cuts is wrong. Either sell us the big picture or pull back.
I’ll be voting UKIP again.
I too am worried by a creeping federalisation of Europe. If someone (party) suggests that we throw ourselves 100% into a European superstate then if, through the democratic process we (British people) vote for it – fine. (We’ll have to live by it) BUT LETS HAVE A VOTE ON IT!
James Higham is looking to put a coalition for disaffected Conservatives and merging them with the UKIP and Libertarian parties….and maybe looking at Dan Han as leader.