***BBC - 08-Sep-2010 - Calls for 'IN or OUT' EU referendum

Tory Daniel Hannan calls for 'in or out' EU referendum

Daniel Hannan: 

There's more demand for referendum on EU membership than on AV voting

A Tory Euro MP has called for a referendum on whether the UK should stay in the European Union, describing it as a "major" constitutional issue.

Daniel Hannan said this had been "repeatedly promised" by several prime ministers but never delivered.

The decision by MPs on Monday to hold a referendum on UK electoral reform strengthened his case, he added.

The coalition government has promised "no further transfer of sovereignty" to the EU during this parliament.

The Conservatives and Liberal Democrats have also agreed that any proposed future treaty to increase Brussels' powers would be subject to a referendum and that ministers would bring in a Sovereignty Bill to ensure that "ultimate authority remains with Parliament".

But Mr Hannan, an MEP for South East England, said incremental changes since the UK joined the Common Market in 1972 had been so thorough that a repeat of the previous "in or out" referendum, held in 1975, was necessary.
'More demand'
 
He said: "The EU doesn't just bound forward in great treaties. It's confidently moving forward every day.

"I think there's an awful lot more demand for a referendum on EU membership than there is for a referendum on the voting system."

“Start Quote

This is an issue which ticks pretty much every box”

End Quote Daniel Hannan Conservative MEP

All three main parties promised at the 2005 general election to hold a referendum on the planned European Constitution, but this was thrown out by Dutch and French voters before a public vote could take place in the UK.

The constitution was replaced by the Lisbon Treaty, on which Labour Prime Ministers Tony Blair and Gordon Brown said there was no need for a public vote as its reforms were less constitutionally fundamental than those contained in its predecessor.
The treaty created a permanent EU president, a legal personality for the union and a high representative for foreign affairs, while also reducing the number of commissioners to streamline procedures in an enlarged EU of 27 states.

The largely pro-European Liberal Democrats promised an "in or out" referendum on EU membership in 2007, but dropped the idea after the Lisbon Treaty was ratified by Parliament in 2008, arguing there was no longer a "public appetite" for such a vote.
The Conservatives continued to promise a referendum on the Lisbon Treaty, once it replaced the EU Constitution, but leader David Cameron ended this commitment after its ratification by all 27 EU member states was completed last year.

'Not indifferent'
 
Many on the eurosceptic wing of his party, including Mr Hannan, have continued to call for a referendum on the deeper question of whether the UK should leave the EU.

Mr Hannan told BBC Radio 4's Today: "This is an issue which ticks pretty much every box. It divides the parties. It's not the kind of issue you can settle easily at a general election.

"It's a matter of major constitutional significance and... we've been repeatedly promised a referendum on Europe by a number of different prime ministers. So I think on an issue of this magnitude, we need to settle it on a test of national will - a referendum."

He said there was "a rift between Parliament and people on this issue", with 45 to 50% of the public against EU membership and only 1% of MPs sharing this view.

Mr Hannan added: "Politicians are not indifferent to public opinion."

On Monday, MPs voted by a majority of 59 to hold a referendum on replacing the first-past-the-post system of Westminster elections with the "alternative vote" (AV) method.

This would mean second choices on ballot papers being taken into account if no single candidate won more than 50% of the vote in any constituency.

If the Parliamentary Voting System and Constituencies Bill passes into law, a referendum on AV will be scheduled for 5 May next year.

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*** The Spectator - 08-Sept2010 - "IN or OUT" referendum on Britain's EU membership

In or out?

Peter Hoskin 4:22pm

 

You've got to hand it to Dan Hannan – he knows how to make a splash. His latest initiative is a cross-party campaign for an "in or out" referendum on Britain's EU membership. You can find details in his article for the Telegraph today or, indeed, on the campaign's actual website. But the basic argument runs thus: with the AV vote next year, referendums are now hardwired into the political mainstream – so why not give us a vote on one of the biggest questions of national sovereignty that we face today? And if you agree with him on that, you can sign up here. 

Hannan is, of course, making a serious point. Europe is almost certainly one of those areas where the Westminster consensus is divorced from public opinion – and a reckoning could well be overdue. But his campaign also promises to serve up a healthy dollop of political entertainment. Here, after all, is a Eurosceptic Conservative pushing for a referendum that the Europhilic Lib Dems promised in their manifesto, but which the coalition has now made an improbability. Stir in the Tories who will be sympathetic to Hannan's cause, and it could turn into quite a raucous affair. 

The question is whether Hannan will get anywhere with this. Putting aside the views of the public and of the government for now, his campaign faces two particular disadvantages. First, it could get submerged by the No and Yes campaigns circling around the AV vote. And, second, it is sometimes unclear, reading the website, whether it is just a campaign for a In/Out referendum, or whether it is a campaign to take us out of Europe altogether. This confusion may be understandable – but it could alienate those who would like a referendum but would vote for us to stay in the union. I mean, things could get really confusing should a pro-Europe, pro-referendum campaign decide to tap-dance onto the stage. 

In the meantime, though, I leave CoffeeHousers with two questions. Referendum: yes or no? And Europe: in or out? The comments section awaits. 

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