A BRITISH Conservative government would pass legislation to guarantee that future European Union treaties are put to referendum “just like Ireland”, Conservative leader David Cameron has declared.
Defending his decision not to hold a referendum on the Lisbon Treaty if elected, Mr Cameron said he could “not make magically disappear” because it is now EU law, following the Czechs’ ratification.
“We will make sure that this never, ever happens again. Never should it be possible for the British government to transfer power without the consent of the British people,” he said, adding that that would include membership of the euro zone.
Meanwhile, he would negotiate over the lifetime of the next parliament for the return of powers over working hours and criminal justice from Brussels, and seek a legal guarantee that the Charter of Fundamental Rights would not supersede British law.
During a private meeting with Conservative MPs, Mr Cameron told them to maintain unity and not to split publicly on the issue when the party could be “just 16 weeks from power”, House of Commons sources said last night.
However, his decision not to press ahead with a Lisbon referendum pledge, even if it had been couched in recent months, has upset half of the Conservatives’ rank-and-file membership, according to a snap poll carried out yesterday.
The future “referendum lock” would be “very similar to the one in Ireland”, and Labour and the Liberal Democrats will be put under pressure to sign up to the pledge in the general election campaign.
A sovereignty Bill would be passed to “ensure the ultimate sovereignty” of Westminster and make it certain that it could not be over-ruled by the EU – similar to the rules in pace in Germany.
However, he rejected demands by Eurosceptic Tories, which were voiced again yesterday, to have a referendum on the UK’s wider membership of the EU, if they cannot have one on the Lisbon Treaty itself.
“I recognise there are some who, now that we cannot have a referendum on the Lisbon Treaty, want a referendum on something else . . . anything else. But I just don’t think it’s right to concoct some new pretext for a referendum simply to have one for the sake of it.
“That wouldn’t survive serious scrutiny. I don’t think a made-up referendum will get Britain anywhere,” said Mr Cameron, adding that it would distract from dealing with the worst public finances in 50 years.
Most of the pledges made by the Tory leader are long-standing party policy: the commitment to amend the 1972 European Communities Act to require referendums in future was first announced in October 2007.
The demand for the repatriation of control over some social and employment law was first made in September, 2005, while the pledge “never” to join the euro zone was first declared the following November.
However, Mr Cameron repeatedly emphasised that he did not want “some massive Euro bust-up, and that he recognised he would need the agreement of other EU states to get the return of some powers from Brussels.
“We will take our time, negotiate firmly, patiently and respectfully, and aim to achieve the return of the powers I have set out over the lifetime of a parliament. I know some people will want me to go further and faster,” he said.
He demanded “a full opt-out” from the Charter of Fundamental Rights (CFR), guarantees that EU judges could not “extend their control” and measures to ensure that criminal prosecutions in the UK could only be launched by British authorities.