William Hague Snubs Tory Right Over EU Membership Referendum Demands

THE GUARDIAN: Foreign secretary says 'our place is in the European Union' and describes coalition government as 'wonderfully refreshing'

William Hague has cast off his reputation as the darling of the Tory right by describing governing with the Liberal Democrats as "wonderfully refreshing". He also rules out a referendum on UK membership of the EU.

The comments by the foreign secretary, in an interview with the Observer, will dismay the many Conservative MPs who resent the Lib Dems' moderating influence on government policy, particularly on relations with Europe, and want their party to champion a more rightwing agenda.

As the Tories gather for their annual conference in Manchester, amid calls from rightwingers for David Cameron to give less ground to their coalition partners, Hague says this administration is working better than the last Tory government in which he served.

"When you sit with David Cameron and Nick Clegg and other senior colleagues examining an issue, it is a wonderfully refreshing, rational discussion, actually, in which you know your party identity is not the first consideration," he says. "The government has a more united spirit than the last government I served in at the end of 18 years of Conservative government."

Hague, formerly a hardline Eurosceptic, insists he has not changed his opinions on the EU, or come under the spell of the pro-EU Foreign Office culture. He still believes the EU has too much power and has never veered from his view that the euro would be a disaster.

But in a sign that life in government has had a profound influence, he also freely points out that in his time as foreign secretary he has seen evidence of the 27-nation bloc operating as a powerful, collective force for good in the world. As a result, he does not believe it would ever be in the UK's interest to think of leaving. Asked if the government might grant a referendum on UK membership of the EU, he says "no", arguing one would be called only to approve or reject further transfers of sovereignty: "Our place is in the European Union." » | Toby Helm and Andrew Rawnsley | Saturday, October 01, 2011

Coming closer to home, Turkey is "a rapidly growing player and one of the countries that I work with the most". If "you add up who I make the most phone calls to" the foreign minister of Turkey is up there with Hillary Clinton. Hague "very much" wants to see Turkey become a member of the European Union, an ambition strongly opposed by some other member states.

Many in his own party will have a cardiac infarction if that means large numbers of Turkish migrant workers arriving in Britain. Hague acknowledges "people have to be won over", but remains emphatic. "I wouldn't be put off by freedom of movement because I think it is a strategic neccesity and economically beneficial to bring Turkey into the EU. Turning away Turkey from the EU would be a great, long-term – a century-long – error by Europe." – Source: The Observer

Tory MPs Demand Referendum on Europe

THE SUNDAY TELEGRAPH: David Cameron must call a referendum on Europe or face a rebellion from his own party and a backlash from voters, a leading back-bench Tory warns today.

Mark Pritchard, the secretary of the 1922 committee of Conservative MPs, is the most senior Tory yet to demand a vote on Britain’s membership of the European Union following the eurozone crisis.

Writing in The Daily Telegraph, Mr Pritchard says that the EU has become an “occupying force” which is eroding British sovereignty and that the “unquestioning support” of backbenchers is no longer guaranteed.

He says the Government should hold a referendum next year on whether Britain should have a “trade only” relationship with the EU, rather than the political union which has evolved “by stealth”.

He warns that the Conservatives will see constituents “kick back” if taxpayers are forced to foot the bill for the failure of “unreformed and lazy” eurozone countries to introduce fully-fledged austerity measures.

Mr Pritchard is a leading figure in a group of 120 Conservative MPs who are pushing the Prime Minister to set out a “clear plan” for pulling back from Europe. » | Andrew Porter, Political Editor | Sunday, September 18, 2011

European Far-right Parties Want Referendum on Turkey in EU
AFP: VIENNA — Europe's far-right parties want an EU-wide referendum on Turkey's plans to join the current 27-nation bloc, the leader of Austria's populist Freedom Party, Heinz-Christian Strache, said Saturday.

Strache, who had invited right-wing parties from Belgium, Denmark, Italy, Slovakia and Sweden to a two-day meeting in the Austrian capital, told a news conference that the parties believed Turkey had no place in Europe and ordinary citizens should be given a say in the matter.

Europe would be "straying down the completely wrong path" if it were to admit "non-European countries" into the European Union, the far-right party leader said.

"That would be the end of the European Union. It would be the beginning of a Euro-Asian-African Union, which goes completely against the project of peace in Europe and must therefore not be allowed," Strache said. >>> AFP | Saturday, October 23, 2010

KRONE: Volksbegehren gegen EU-Beitritt der Türkei geplant: Europas Rechtsparteien planen ein Bürgerbegehren gegen den EU-Beitritt der Türkei. Dies kündigte FPÖ-Chef Heinz-Christian Strache am Samstag nach einem zweitägigen Treffen von Parteienvertretern in Wien an. Die Freiheitlichen und ihre europäischen Gleichgesinnten wollen sich, so Strache, künftig besser koordinieren, um "Fehlentwicklungen in der Europapolitik" entgegenzuwirken. >>> | Samstag, 23. Oktober 2010

MPs Reject Call for EU Membership Referendum
Photo of EU flags courtesy of The Guardian
THE GUARDIAN: MPs voted today overwhelmingly against the idea of having a referendum on Britain's membership of the European Union.

Labour and the Conservatives joined forces to vote down the Liberal Democrat proposal, which was rejected in the Commons by 471 votes to 68, a majority of 403.

William Hague, the shadow foreign secretary, claimed the Lib Dem proposal was a "fig leaf", designed to disguise the fact that Nick Clegg's party was breaking a promise it made at the last election to support a referendum on the proposed EU constitution.

Today's vote was on a technical motion, and a Lib Dem win would not automatically have led to the holding of a referendum on Britain's EU membership.

But their defeat means that the issue is highly unlikely to be put to a vote again while the European Union (amendment) bill, the legislation ratifying the Lisbon treaty, goes through parliament. MPs reject call for EU membership referendum >>> By Andrew Sparrow, senior political correspondent | Tuesday March 4 2008

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