Thursday, February 28, 2008

Two question referendum amendment accepted

The Liberal/Democrat bluff on an EU referendum on withdrawal from the EU seems to have been called by Labour MP Ian Davidson who has had an amendment posing one question on withdrawal and one on the Lisbon Treaty's acceptability selected for debate. Unhappily, as I read his amendment, the question to be posed on the UK totally withdrawing puts the process under the constraints of the Lisbon Treaty, the only such portion being enacted. One of the biggest arguments against the Lisbon Treaty is that a country wishing to leave can only do so upon terms laid down by the remaining states. This is a clever trap and although the intent is good substantial re-drafting seems required. Nevertheless as laid down a probable result would most likely be the UK staying in with the Lisbon exit clause but nothing else - an apparently impossible scenario for the other member states! As the EU Parliament has already refused to respect the Irish referendum result they would presumably treat a UK NO the same way - so we are left hoping for a parliamentary non-ratification which seems ever more distant following the Polish parliament's approval today!

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