After Lisbon
So the European constitution - sorry, the Lisbon treaty - has finally been ratified.
The worst thing about this constitution is not that it is a vague, badly written treaty - though even some of those were on the body which drafted it, such as Gisela Stuart MP, think it is - but the dishonest and anti-democratic way it has been forced through against the wishes of the electorates of several countries.
Voters in Britain were promised a referendum and saw that promise cynically broken.
Voters in one or two countries, such as France, were given a referendum, voted the constitution down, and saw it imposed on them anyway through the back door.
Voters in Ireland rejected it and were then made to vote again until they gave the result the authorities wanted.
It's no way to run a modern, democratic association of nations.
While the treaty had not yet been ratified, it was right for David Cameron to promise that, if we had come to power before this point, we would suspend ratification while holding a referendum.
But now that the treaty has actually been ratified, holding a vote on whether to ratify it would be the ultimate exercise in slamming the stable door after the horse has bolted. At best it would be a total waste of money at a time when Labour has nearly bankrupted our national finances. At worst it would be another cynical con trick against the electorate, raising hopes which cannot be met.
The Sun has an excellent analysis of who is to blame for this situation here.
As they point out
"So who do we blame for this? Not Mr Cameron, who stuck by his original pledge.
We blame deceitful Labour for welching on their written vow to give us a say.
Instead, they connived to defraud us of a vote and used their majority to ram it through Parliament."
(I would add that there were one or two honorable Labour MPs, such as Gisela Stuart and Frank Field, who voted to keep their election promise and were nearly disciplined as a result.)
So now we have to move forward: I believe the emphasis must be working for a more democratic Europe. The establishments of most member states are in favour of ever closer integration, but the electorates of most countries are not. It is time for those who want to change Europe, whether for reform or integration, to have to persuade their voters of the case for change, instead of tricking them, breaking promises, or just ignoring the people.
A law to ensure that any future treaty transferring powers to Brussels requires a referendum in Britain can only be the start.
There will be those who are so annoyed by the sorry tale of surrender that they are tempted to vote for UKIP or the BNP. I believe that would be a mistake. Neither of these parties is likely to return a single MP to Westminster: but one possible result if voters who would otherwise have supported the Conservatives vote UKIP or BNP is to allow this despised Labour government to cling by its' fingernails to power. Gordon Brown and Alistair Darling deserve to have to sort out the mess they are creating, but the rest of us do not deserve another five years of these clowns.
As the Sun puts it
"Thanks to Gordon Brown, Britain is up to its eyes in debt, the Pound is sinking, dole queues are swollen and we face industrial strife on a scale unseen since the Winter of Discontent. We need strong, unflinching government to see us through these difficult times - and Labour is not fit for the job.
If the Tories win, they must work night and day to get us out of this mess.
They cannot waste precious energy fighting on two fronts.
So we are not prepared to tie David Cameron's hands just as he is about to take the wheel.
The issue of Europe will not go away.
When we have this debate, we must do so when we are not distracted by the worst economic crisis in living memory.
Meanwhile if we can't have a referendum now, we can at least have a say on election day.
This government deserves defeat for many reasons.
But for Sun readers, one of the biggest of all will be Labour's abject act of treachery over Europe."
The worst thing about this constitution is not that it is a vague, badly written treaty - though even some of those were on the body which drafted it, such as Gisela Stuart MP, think it is - but the dishonest and anti-democratic way it has been forced through against the wishes of the electorates of several countries.
Voters in Britain were promised a referendum and saw that promise cynically broken.
Voters in one or two countries, such as France, were given a referendum, voted the constitution down, and saw it imposed on them anyway through the back door.
Voters in Ireland rejected it and were then made to vote again until they gave the result the authorities wanted.
It's no way to run a modern, democratic association of nations.
While the treaty had not yet been ratified, it was right for David Cameron to promise that, if we had come to power before this point, we would suspend ratification while holding a referendum.
But now that the treaty has actually been ratified, holding a vote on whether to ratify it would be the ultimate exercise in slamming the stable door after the horse has bolted. At best it would be a total waste of money at a time when Labour has nearly bankrupted our national finances. At worst it would be another cynical con trick against the electorate, raising hopes which cannot be met.
The Sun has an excellent analysis of who is to blame for this situation here.
As they point out
"So who do we blame for this? Not Mr Cameron, who stuck by his original pledge.
We blame deceitful Labour for welching on their written vow to give us a say.
Instead, they connived to defraud us of a vote and used their majority to ram it through Parliament."
(I would add that there were one or two honorable Labour MPs, such as Gisela Stuart and Frank Field, who voted to keep their election promise and were nearly disciplined as a result.)
So now we have to move forward: I believe the emphasis must be working for a more democratic Europe. The establishments of most member states are in favour of ever closer integration, but the electorates of most countries are not. It is time for those who want to change Europe, whether for reform or integration, to have to persuade their voters of the case for change, instead of tricking them, breaking promises, or just ignoring the people.
A law to ensure that any future treaty transferring powers to Brussels requires a referendum in Britain can only be the start.
There will be those who are so annoyed by the sorry tale of surrender that they are tempted to vote for UKIP or the BNP. I believe that would be a mistake. Neither of these parties is likely to return a single MP to Westminster: but one possible result if voters who would otherwise have supported the Conservatives vote UKIP or BNP is to allow this despised Labour government to cling by its' fingernails to power. Gordon Brown and Alistair Darling deserve to have to sort out the mess they are creating, but the rest of us do not deserve another five years of these clowns.
As the Sun puts it
"Thanks to Gordon Brown, Britain is up to its eyes in debt, the Pound is sinking, dole queues are swollen and we face industrial strife on a scale unseen since the Winter of Discontent. We need strong, unflinching government to see us through these difficult times - and Labour is not fit for the job.
If the Tories win, they must work night and day to get us out of this mess.
They cannot waste precious energy fighting on two fronts.
So we are not prepared to tie David Cameron's hands just as he is about to take the wheel.
The issue of Europe will not go away.
When we have this debate, we must do so when we are not distracted by the worst economic crisis in living memory.
Meanwhile if we can't have a referendum now, we can at least have a say on election day.
This government deserves defeat for many reasons.
But for Sun readers, one of the biggest of all will be Labour's abject act of treachery over Europe."
Comments
Perhaps if you got more sleep you would be less bad-tempered.