Czechs leave Cameron stranded over Lisbon Treaty
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Europe's leaders celebrated last night after the Lisbon treaty was finally ratified after two years of delay, paving the way to the creation of a new-look European Union.
The final hurdle to its endorsement was swept away when the Eurosceptic Czech President, Vaclav Klaus, became the last of the 27 EU leaders to sign the document.
But the move forced the Tory leadership into a damaging policy U-turn as they abandoned the party's long-held promise to hold a referendum on Lisbon. William Hague, the shadow Foreign Secretary, conceded last night that holding a vote on Lisbon was "no longer possible".
David Cameron will now face charges of betrayal from Eurosceptics on the party's backbenches after he made a "cast-iron guarantee" to the public in 2007 that he would hold a referendum on the treaty.
He is to outline his party's new approach to the Europe today, when he is expected to back renegotiation of some of the Lisbon treaty's measures and guarantee a referendum on any similar document drawn up in the future.
"Now that the treaty is going to become European law and is going to enter into force, that means a referendum can no longer prevent the creation of the president of the European Council and the loss of British national vetoes," Mr Hague said. "These things will already have happened and a referendum cannot unwind them or prevent them.
"We were very clear that our promise applied to those circumstances. After today, those things will come into force and a referendum can't change them."
The treaty is designed to streamline EU decision-making and improve scrutiny of its policies. President Klaus added his name to the treaty, turning it into European law, after the Czech Constitutional Court threw out a claim that the agreement was unconstitutional.
Now the EU will arrange an emergency summit within two weeks to choose the holders of the posts created by the treaty, with a view to the jobs coming into force on 1 January. Most attention will focus on the selection of the President of the European Council and the EU High Representative, effectively its foreign minister.
Herman Van Rompuy, the Belgian Prime Minister, and Jan Peter Balkenende, his Dutch counterpart, are viewed as current front-runners for the presidency, with Tony Blair's allies insisting he is still in the running for the job. Mr Blair's supporters maintain they are not deterred by the doubts cast over his candidacy by France, Germany and smaller EU member states.
Were the former prime minister to drop out of the race, attention would focus on Foreign Secretary David Miliband's credentials for the post of High Representative. He has said he is "not available" and "not a candidate" for the job, but failed last week to rule himself out under all circumstances.
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Comments
It looks as though all we can look forward to if the Tories win the next election is the lying political manners we have come to expect from New Labour.
I only hope UKIP stands in the Sedgefield constituency because they will be getting my vote regardless of their policies just so that I can vote against the lying, deceitfull and selfserving Conservatives, New Labour and that muddle through party, the Lib/Dem's.
Roll on the next general election when we get the chance to chase the mainline political parties that have themselves and not the country at the centre of all their policies.
nothing wrong with the Liberals lay off , try if you know how, to show us why you and yours, are so much better, don't just slag off the opposition, we need more to go on than that, or shut up. Okay ?
Blair was asked by Bush to ditch the EU and join NAFTA, that is the alternative.
With regards to the EU, has anyone actually thought what would happen if we walked away? Whilst I abhor the control the banks have over our country as much as the EU's bureaucratic control over us, I do understand that we need to trade and if we walk away from one of the worlds biggest trading blocs, what will replace that?
We don't have an empire any more and the US is going downhill pretty quickly, we are going to isolate ourselves pretty much.
That's you stuffed then..
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So Tony Blair almost certainly won't be the first President, and David Miliband may well not make the foreign affairs post. These positions will be fairly low profile, which always was the intention. The larger members won't want to be upstaged for one thing.
We have far more pressing matters than the EU to contend with. Whether David Cameron enters Downing Street or not next year, it's the economy and our mountain of debt, both public and private, which will dominate the election and its aftermath.
No doubt the usual suspects will try to make it otherwise. UKIP will now be the focus for people of this tendancy. Will it cost the Tories the election? Perhaps, but if so they have only themselves to blame. They need a "Clause 4" moment on Europe. Until they accept that the EU will not go away and they had better come to terms with it, they'll tear themselves apart. As far as I'm concerned, unless they start and grow up on Europe, they'll be a disaster in government.
I have to laugh, though. Why Cameron dug himself this pit with his "cast-iron guarantee" to "Sun" readers baffled me at the time. After all, it was always likely that the Treaty would be ratified before a UK general election, and that, pragmatically, he would either have to retreat from the pledge or be forced to forget the Treaty and make the issue the substantive one of staying in or getting out. Which the Tories clearly are unwilling to do, despite the Eurosceptic foamers at the mouth within their party ranks, and those UKIP-sympathizing waverers whose they want to woo.
Al he's succeeded in doing so far is reopening the Tories' toxic obsession with Europe at the precise moment when he finds himself on the back foot, and within six months of the election. Why do that? He'll have to come up with something pretty good later today to put this genie back in the bottle.
Still, it remains good for a laugh. My other half tells me it's cruel to laugh at others' misfortunes, but it's hard to resist in this instance.
There is just the possibility that if we keep up our moaning and groaning, it will be Europe that kicks us out and lets us sink, allowing our 'sovereign' politicians to carry on robbing us, unmolested.
What's special about a partly rundown country? Other european countries have better industries or infrastructure and transport or social security or health provision or a better constitutional set up etc. No country is special or perfect but for most europeans it's hard to see where Britain shines apart from pop culture. I'm sorry.
What Britain is most known for is for being insular and therefore not very open to the rest. Like a child that agrees by a head decision to stay in the playground but then doesn't play with the others, standing at the edge with the hands in its pockets being unhappy of not being regarded as special. So it starts to shout that message by itself.
The other kids are not impressed though :).
The most remarkable thing I learned about this country in my eight years here is the gap between the perception this country has of itself (and the way it brainwashes itself through the media and politicians) and the reality of what's actually around you. For someone who did not grow up here and missed the constant feed of how "great" Britain is it sometimes beggars belief.
I believe if the British came down to earth they could concentrate on the good and productive aspects of their culture and mentality, of which there are plenty, and start being a big player in Europe. It would be welcomed in Europe.
If not, they are free to leave the EU. Wouldn't leave the rest in tears though.
Had they given the people a free vote like Dutch French and Irish they would surely have said no.
Ironic that only fringe paries in a FarageO of democracy truly reflect public opinion.
Why wont Brown nor Cameron put the question?
Because they know they woudny like the answer pull out.
Most of the richest countries in Eurpe Switzerland Norway Monaco Vatican scrape by outside Eu,
With GATT and the Doha round on Free trade Eu is redundant and if UK has the courage to withdraw Ireland Scandanavia nd many others may prefer to be in an EFTA styel trading club rather than in western provonce of a new Ottaman Empire.
Sorry our poor lustrated President there are no dud Czechs
Let's all vote for UKIP, and get the hell out of europe. I read somewhere that some politicain wanted USA to join. Say, what?
they will say what is necessary to serve their own purpose. shameron's cast-iron guarantee is the same sort of lie as bliar's proof of wmd in his dodgy dossier. both are self-serving and untrustworthy men - both have a charming exterior endowed to them by privileged lives.