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Nick Clegg calls for a referendum on Europe

October 28, 2011 12:23 pm

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The big story of the last week has been the potential rift in the coalition between the anti-Europe Tories and the pro-Europe Lib Dems. Driving a wedge between his party and his coalition partners  Nick Clegg said to the Daily Telegraph:

“For as long as I’ve been in politics, the Conservative Party has had a bee in its bonnet about Europe…I think eurosceptics need to be careful what they wish for. We as a country are massively dependent on a successful Europe for our own prosperity, British jobs, for money in people’s pockets. Every step towards the exit sign will lead to lower confidence in the British economy.”

Given that and how the media continually portrayed the Lib Dems as the only party united on Europe, in favour of great British participation in the EU and against a referendum on membership, many will wonder why Clegg was pledging a referendum himself just last year.

This is not just a surprise for everyone who thought Clegg was against a referendum on EU membership but also highlights, if we really needed to do it again, the duplicitous nature of Clegg’s “I’ll do anything for a vote” Lib Dem opportunists.

Remember that the same 2010 election was the one in which Clegg and his candidates personally signed pledges not to increase student tuition fees. Now this. Voters will be left wondering what Clegg really stands for. It certainly isn’t clarity or consistency.

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  • http://twitter.com/geekofhearts Joe Jordan

    oh FFS. this has been debunked about 100 times already, all over the internet. This is just more Labour misrepresentation and nonsense.

    to quote the manifesto:

    “The European Union has evolved significantly since the last public vote 
    on membership over thirty years ago. Liberal Democrats therefore remain 
    committed to an in/out referendum the next time a British government signs 
    up for fundamental change in the relationship between the UK and the EU. ”

    note – the referendum we were (and are) proposing happens only when we would be paying for one anyway as part of a treaty acceptance – not whenever the Tory backbench think it’s time to give their leader a kicking.

    • Tim McLoughlin

      Isn’t the point that Clegg has done much the same as Cameron, proposed a referendum then come out against it once in power?

  • http://twitter.com/UOldfield Ust Oldfield

    I agree with Joe. Spinning misrepresentation of facts is not clever. Also, it’s incorrect to label Tories as Eurosceptic and Lib Dems as pro-Europe as there are members of either party which do not fit in with your crude labelling – Ken Clarke being a prominent example. 

    Nick Clegg is also correct in the piece you have drawn the quote from – Britain is incredibly dependent on the EU. It would cost us more to leave it than to remain in. We wouldn’t have a voice in, arguably, the most powerful trading bloc in the world thus destroying confidence in the economy. 

    Whilst I disagree, on principle, with referendums, promising a referendum when the fundamental nature of Britain’s relationship with the EU changes due to a treaty is politically astute. 

    • Tim McLoughlin

      The composition of the parliamentary Tory party is now Eurosceptic. The 2005 and 2010 intakes have increased this. Of course there are members of all three main parties that disagree with the prevalent view/policy of that party. 

      This does also beg the next question though and that is what Labour does about the EU in the longer term. That isn’t clear. 

    • Anonymous

      ” It would cost us more to leave it than to remain in.”

      If true then this case needs to be made loud and clear. If true.

      • http://twitter.com/Newsbot9 Newsbot9

         Facts don’t have a place in the debate.

  • Anonymous

    Ah yes like Labour did with the referendum oh yes but we did not get it because well  Blair worked it out for us. I think Labour  or the Labour party dream about this so called rift in the coalition, sadly I think as the years pass and the coalition stay strong perhaps Miliband and his mates will start looking at policies within the Tories, problem is of course these are the same policies labour would have gone for, three Tory parties.

    You’d better start  telling us exactly how labour would deal with things telling the people look this is what your going to get.

    • Tim McLoughlin

      Whatever Labour says or proposes there is a liklihood that Europe will cause tension in the coaltion. Clegg himself said it in his Telegraph interview where he said, rightly, that the Tories have had a “bee in their bonnet” about Europe ever since he can remember. 

      The slighted backbench Tories will continue to use this as a stick to beat their leader with. It then won’t necessarily just be Labour trying to drive wedged between the Lib Dems and Tories in coalition, it’ll be the Tory right too. I just don’t think this issue is going to go away easily now.

      • Anonymous

        Will they push this and force Cameron to either step down or worse go to the country, I cannot for the life of me see this happening.

        • Tim McLoughlin

          They’ll push it much further than they have already. The problem, for the coalition, is that many on the anti-Europe Tory right would be quite happy to have a general election. They would much prefer a pure Tory government and may use this as a means to get their end.

  • John G

    @twitter-19534396:disqus to quote the leaflet: “That’s why the Liberal Democrats want a real referendum on
    Europe. Only a real referendum on Britain’s membership of the EU will let the people
    decide our country’s future.”

    So Clegg is misrepresenting his own manifesto on his own leaflet, then breaking that promise when in power.

    At least he is consistent.

  • Franwhi

    Tim – the question is do you agree with Nick Cleggs stance on Europe or not ? Do the Labour Party agree with his stance on Europe or not ? You have a ‘bee in your bonnet’ about the process but what are your beliefs ? Everyday it seems people come on LL bashing Nick Clegg and scoring cheap points but seldom do we hear stated something that is very evident which is that there are more points of agreement between the Lib Dems and Labour than points of separation especially around issues like Europe, parliamentary reform, banking reform and local democracy. Be warned – up here in Scotland Labour have imploded due to negative campaigning and lack of a credible political narrative. The electorate rightly perceiving that while Scottish Labour talked a lot about who and what they were against (namely Alex Salmond and the SNP)they had little to say about what they stood for.  Don’t fall into that trap by bear baiting Nick Clegg – it’s not politically astute or electorally appealing in the long run as your erstwhile Scottish colleagues will surely and sorely agree.        

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