Tories vow EU changes

[emilycross]

Opposition leader, David Cameron, whose the favourite to take over from Gordon Brown says that even though they won't be holding a referendum about Lisbon, they will secure opt-outs on the Charter of Fundamental Rights and certain social and employment legislation, and also limit the power of the European Court of Justice in Britain.

Source (http://uk.news.yahoo.com/18/20091104/tuk-tories-vow-eu-changes-after-treaty-u-a7ad41d.html)

Can i ask what opt-outs would Britian want? and haven't they (and of course Ireland has too) significant opt-outs already??

One positive for the British people in my opinion is this :

Cameron also pledged to change British law so that any future transfer of powers to Brussels under the Lisbon Treaty must be approved by parliament, and any other treaties would be subject to a referendum.

[Shakesbear]

NO transfer of power to Brussels.

[Fran]

The main opt-out Britain wants is to keep out the Euro.

Also the government aren't keen on the Working Time Directive which basically stops businesses working their employees over 40 hours a week. At the moment British employees can sign waivers to say they don't mind but that's going to be stopped.

We also don't want any of those funny foreign languages, or funny foreign food. And until this debate isn't being run by a handful of xenophobic little Englanders we're not going to get anywhere in my opinion. I don't agree with everything Europe does by any means (your repeat referendum is a case in point, emily) and I think some of its institutions could do with some lessons in democratic process, but I'm broadly supportive. Although the thought of Blair in charge gies me the baulk.

[Priene]

Cameron's looking like an idiot because he made all those promises about a referendum over the Lisbon Treaty, but now it's ratified and he can't do a thing about it. He's also pooing his pants about UKIP draining away some of his future majority.
This is a PR stunt to mollify the Europhobic Right. A law which does nothing but make a future law needing a referendum. Sounds like he's planning to fritter away valuable Parliamentary time on nothing at all. Parliament can always change its mind, and any future act could easily repeal his referendum-demanding nonsense.

Generally, the opt-outs the Tories want are the ones that refuse rights to workers.

social and employment legislation

That means giving us less rights than our counterparts in every other European country. I don't see much to cheer about there.

[emilycross]

*sigh* i'd posted something last night but my computer acted up,

I was going to say prior to Prienes post that i myself am pro-europe although i'm thankful we do get to vote on referendum. Personally i think Ireland would be still going round in horse and karts if it wasn't for europe and the laws they've implemented.

I know its never going to happen, but i wish England would join the euro - everytime my friend heads home from college she's to change her money (she lives in the north).

French Foreign Minister said he was conveying Nicolas Sarkozy's "sadness and regret", told the Guardian that David Cameron's plan to renegotiate EU treaties would not succeed "for a minute".

He said: "It's pathetic. It's just very sad to see Britain, so important in Europe, just cutting itself out from the rest and disappearing from the radar map .... This is a culture of opposition ... It is the result of a long period of opposition. I know they will come back, but I hope the trip will be short."

"They have essentially castrated your UK influence in the European parliament," he added.

But the shadow foreign secretary, William Hague, insisted that Lellouche's comments did not reflect the genuine European response to the Tories' plans.

"I don't think you will find that's representative of the reaction in Paris or other European capitals," he told BBC2's Newsnight.

source (http://www.newstatesman.com/2009/11/european-france-minister)

[Priene]

Just about the only major decisions Cameron has had to make have been European ones, and he looks way out of his depth.

He withdrew the Tories from the main centre-right group and got in bed with Polish racists and Latvian Waffen-SS supporters, denying himself any influence with the most powerful politicians on the continent.

He then sent a letter to the Czech PM asking him not to ratify Lisbon, which not only made him look powerless but also inept, as the Czechs ratified anyway. He needlessly offended politicians in every other European country, all of whom had already ratified.

Now this promise of feeble non-legislation. He thinks he can pointlessly antagonise everyone that matters and then sit down with them to renegotiate things. He has no idea how diplomacy works. It's embarrassing.

If you all think Brown looks out of his depth, wait until the boy David gets started.

[Fran]

Europe should be the easiest subject in the world for a Tory leader. They might lose support to UKIP because of the referendum, but really Cameron's hands were tied. I agree the Tory party aligning itself with the far-right nutters was a baffling decision, and I honestly don't understand why Cameron's having such a hard time with this. He should have made it clear a referendum was out of the question as soon as Brown signed the Lisbon Treaty. I can only conclude he's getting really bad or non-existent advice, or he's a total incompetent.

But we all know no one who went to Eton could possibly be an incompetent. ;)

[Priene]

True, he's from Eton. Let's face it, none of us are a match for his untamed wit (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IEOz7U-LVNI).

[Fran]

I love that song.

M Lellouche has had a tantrum about this, and he actually LIKES the UK. http://uk.news.yahoo.com/4/20091105/tuk-tories-risk-castrating-uk-influence-dba1618.html God knows what those who don't think of us right now.