The European Constitution

October 2007

A key issue in recent months has been whether we should have a referendum on the proposed European Constitutional Treaty. I was clear in the House of Commons before the end of Parliament in the summer that I was strongly in favour of a referendum and I have been taking that campaign forward during recent months.

The British Government have been arguing that is different from the previous EU Constitution which they were happy to have put to a referendum. But, whatever they say, other European leaders have let the cat out of the bag. The German leader, Angela Merkel, recently said about the Treaty: “The substance of the Constitution is preserved. That is a fact.” Prime Ministers and Presidents in Spain, Denmark, Ireland, The Czech Republic, Belgium and Solvenia have also said similar things. And Valery Giscard d'Estaing, the former French President and the author of the original European Constitution said: “In terms of content, the proposals remain largely unchanged, they are simply presented in a different way.”

Virtually everything that was in the Constitution is in the Treaty. For example there will still be a “foreign minister”, the name just changes to “High Representative for the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy”! And the treaty will extend the power and influence of the EU in many other ways – especially doing away with the national veto in around 50 new areas mainly related to the police and judiciary.

People have also questioned why we should have a referendum on the Treaty when we don’t on other issues. I believe our relationship as a sovereign nation to the EU is different from other “day-to-day” matters that can rightly be decided at General Elections. For me, power does not reside with politicians or indeed Governments – ultimately it resides with the people. This is about who can make laws and take decisions that we all have to then obey and abide by. The people of this country should, therefore, be allowed and trusted to say who they want to have power over them and in what way. So, I will therefore continue to campaign for a referendum.