THE BRITISH Prime Minister, Mr Major, has blamed "immoral" rulings on workers' rights for lengthening EU dote queues.
His denunciation of the EU Social Chapter as a "jobs tax" and his warning that other countries could use it to force their rising employment costs and red tape on Britain was rejected by the Labour Party leader.
Mr Tony Blair said the Social Chapter was a "a set of principles" under which there had, in fact, been only "one piece of legislation about how employees get greater rights of consultation.
"There's another proposal about parental leave. Those are the only two bits of legislation that have actually been proposed. There is no proposal anywhere in the Social Chapter to increase taxes. It is an absolutely absurd piece of Conservative propaganda.
"Every single other conservative party in Europe is in favour of the Social Chapter, as is every other conservative government," he said.
Mr Major said no British government under his leadership would go back on the opt out Britain negotiated as part of the Maastricht Treaty - despite pressure from opposition parties and EU partners.
But Mr Major said he could never have looked the unemployed in the eye again" if he had signed up and insisted that social rulings would wreak havoc for business and jobs, both now and in the future.
"If Britain were in the Social Chapter we would have precious little say over which bits applied to us," he told a lunch organised by the Institute of Directors in Birmingham.
"We couldn't rely on being able to block proposals we thought were damaging. To think we could pick and mix is naive.
"Experience negotiating in Europe has taught me that we mustn't look just at what is in the Social Chapter now, but what it could be used for in the future.
"The Social Chapter should be seen for what it is, a European jobs tax. A tax on jobs by the front door and, in time, by the back door. That's why it's immoral. That's why if I'd signed the Social Chapter I could never have looked the unemployed in the eye again."
Mr Major, mounting a concerted fight back after rumours at Westminster of a new leadership plot, hailed the competitive edge won by Britain through pegging employment costs.
He claimed the achievements of the government were the envy of the EU and added: "Our enterprise economy is not negotiable. Our economic success is too valuable to be destroyed by experiments."
Mr Major contrasted rising unemployment in Germany, France, Italy and Spain with falling unemployment in Britain. "In Britain, for every £100 spent on wages an employer has to add an extra £18 for non wage costs. But that same employer would have to add £32 in Germany, £34 in Spain, £41 in France and £44 in Italy," he said.
The prime minister, developing a theme that will play a central role in the Tory fightback, said the government was proud of its record in assisting enterprise.
He reaffirmed his long term aims of abolishing inheritance and capital gains tax and bringing down government spending as a share of national income from the current 42 per cent to under 40.
Mr Major promised to continue to take tough decisions to help ordinary people and to increase individual ownership of shares, savings, pensions, small businesses and homes.