Isolation from Europe would be 'folly', says PM

Tony Blair said yesterday that the European Union's decision to admit 10 countries in 2004 had reinforced the need for Britain to play a full part at the heart of the Union.

Although he did not mention the single currency, he said the 10 new nations would eventually join the euro. Ministers who support joining the currency say Britain could one day be the only EU member not in the euro if the Government delays a referendum.

In a Commons statement on last week's European summit in Copenhagen, the Prime Minister said the prospect of Turkey joining the EU was dramatic as it bordered the Arab world and was a Muslim country striking out on a path to liberal democracy.

He said, in time, all new member countries would be part of the European economy, monetary union, defence and political system. He added: "For us in Britain, the implications are equally profound. Given this new Europe taking shape, it is our job to be part of it, be a leading power in it, understand the degree to which our national interest is bound up with it.

"Isolation from Europe in this new world is absolute folly. That is why we shall continue to fight for our interests, but recognise that ultimately they are best served inside the EU, not on its margins."

He added: "The summit was a remarkable achievement. It describes a future in which Europe is re-united, a Europe of proud and sovereign nation states, who work together, economically, socially and politically in their common interest."

Mr Blair clashed with Iain Duncan Smith, who expressed regret that expansion plans had taken so long.

"It is 13 years since the Berlin wall came down – 13 years of excluding central and eastern European countries from western European markets, all because Brussels insisted on full compliance with social legislation," he said.

"Enlargement may be the EU's finest hour, but its delay reveals the vested interest in parts of the EU with which we have all become too familiar."

The Tory leader claimed Mr Blair had been "outflanked" by France and Germany at the summit over the start date for talks to admit Turkey, which wanted its membership talks to start before the 10 nations were admitted in May 2004.