Dutch parties call for another Euro-referendum - Dan HANNAN MEP - Telegraph - 03-Nov-2010

Dutch parties call for another Euro-referendum - Dan HANNAN MEP - Telegraph - 03-Nov-2010

Dutch parties call for another Euro-referendum

Consult the people? Whatever next?

So inured are we to the absence of democracy in the EU, so habituated to our powerlessness, that we barely reacted when European leaders explicitly announced that their objective, in amending the treaties as Angela Merkel wants, was to avoid a referendum. Everyone understands that ballots on the EU tend to produce “No” votes. Eurocrats barely bother to pretend any more that they enjoy popular support.

So you can imagine the agitation in Brussels at the prospect of a second Euro-referendum in the Netherlands – a proposal now supported by the Freedom Party (PVV) as well as the Socialist Party (hat-tip, EU Observer). Dutch voters want a say on the massive liabilities being imposed on them by the euro crisis. Having been net beneficiaries of EU spending until the mid-1990s, they are now, in per capita terms, among the main contributors.

Most Dutch leaders regard the prospect of consulting the electorate with horror. Like their counterparts elsewhere in the EU, they tend to see themselves as qualified to rule by their expertise rather than by the ballot box. The Anglo-Dutch writer Ian Buruma calls the Dutch elites the “regenten”, after the fastidious oligarchs who controlled the republic until the late eighteenth century.

Eurocrats, too, are determined to avoid another Dutch plebiscite. They remember that the level-headed Hollanders rejected the European Constitution by a whopping 62 per cent. (Needless to say, Brussels disregarded that vote and went ahead anyway on the basis of what I call the EU’s Brechtian imperative: “Wouldn’t it be easier to dissolve the people and elect another in their place?”) If the Dutch were allowed a vote, several of their neighbours might become restive. British voters might ask why the Netherlands should be allowed to vote on Britain’s future.

Sooner or later, there will have to be an EU plebiscite in this country. I hope that our political leaders will anticipate the demand: they would be handsomely rewarded. Incidentally, several of my readers keep asking me how many people have signed The Pledge, which demands such a vote. Over 30,000 so far.

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The Sunday Mirror on Referendum & Economy 31-Oct-2010

The Sunday Mirror on Referendum & Economy 31-Oct-2010

BRITISH PEOPLE MUST HAVE A VOTE OVER EURO POWER SHIFT

DAVID Cameron claims he won a great victory over the EU but at what price?

By resisting the proposed 5.9 per cent budget increase he believes he’s asserted our right to say no to Brussels but the Council of Ministers meeting that backed his demand also agreed to sweeping changes in the way the EU will operate in future.

Germany’s Angela Merkel has won backing for what is, in effect, a new “economic government” of the EU, so Brussels can prevent member states from borrowing and spending too much. Mr Cameron will argue that this is fine, as it will affect only countries in the eurozone and that Britain is therefore exempt but we are not. The new economic government will claim the right to examine all member state budgets to ensure their proposals are “competitive enough”, regardless of whether they use the euro. This marks a major transfer of power to Brussels, with George Osborne having to win approval from Europe for the way we decide to spend our money.

The ministers who back Ms Merkel’s plan know that the Lisbon Treaty (effectively the EU constitution) should be amended to incorporate these new powers and that the altered treaty should be voted on by member states but they don’t want that. So they have instructed pliable EU President Herman Van Rompuy to make a minimal change to the treaty so voters will believe there has been no real modification. It’s dishonest. If they get away with it, a tiny change of wording will herald a major switch and Parliamentary powers will be signed away.

When the treaty was first raised and Gordon Brown reneged on Labour’s promise of a referendum on the issue Mr Cameron and William Hague vowed there would be no further shift of power to Europe without a national vote. Now is the time to honour that promise. In exchange for getting a couple of per cent off our annual EU membership bill, Mr Cameron has signed  away more sovereignty.

The people of Britain have fought hard for the right to determine their own affairs in their own Parliament. To deny us a vote to decide how we should protect our rights is yet another betrayal.

CLICK HERE TO SIGN THE PETITION FOR AN EU REFERENDUM

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* - MERKEL & SARKOZY Give Clear Boost To THE PETITION & REFERENDUM

Under pressure David Cameron faces calls for a new EU vote

By Daily Mail Reporter
Last updated at 10:20 AM on 20th October 2010

 

David Cameron was under fresh pressure to hold a referendum on Europe last night - as France and Germany called for the controversial Lisbon Treaty to be redrawn.

In a surprise move, German chancellor Angela Merkel and French president Nicolas Sarkozy called for a new EU treaty to be agreed within two years.

In a joint statement the two leaders said it was ‘necessary to revise the (Lisbon) Treaty’ in order to deal with the fallout from the financial crisis.

David Cameron is under fresh pressure to hold a referendum on Europe after France and Germany called for the Lisbon Treaty to be redrawn

Ministers have pledged to introduce a ‘referendum lock’ which would require the Government to hold a public vote on any treaty changes affecting Britain.

But privately they are desperate to avoid a referendum on a subject which could split the coalition partners. Douglas Carswell, a senior Eurosceptic Tory, last night warned that right-wingers would use any move to renegotiate the Lisbon Treaty to press for a referendum.

And Mats Persson, of the think tank Open Europe, said: ‘A new EU treaty would have huge implications for the UK.’

France and Germany want to change the Lisbon Treaty to bring in tough penalties for eurozone countries such as Greece, which break the rules of the euro pact.

Allies: French President Nicolas Sarkozy and German Chancellor Angela Merkel walk by the sea during a summit with Russia in Deauville

The development came as the European Commission tabled plans to levy direct taxes on all EU citizens.

Proposals include taxes on flights and energy - or even a new VAT charge on almost all goods, which would be paid directly to Brussels.

EU budget commissioner Janusz Lewandowski is also pressing for an end to Britain’s £3.1billion budget rebate.

Timothy Kirkhope, Tory leader in the European Parliament, said: ‘Our rebate is fully justified.’

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