Cameron denies Tory EU 'turmoil'

[pampango]

Source: BBC

Conservative leader David Cameron has denied his party is in turmoil after he was forced to abandon a promised referendum on the Lisbon Treaty. But Mr Cameron is still under pressure from Eurosceptics in his own party to offer the public a say on Europe ... that is unlikely to satisfy the Eurosceptic wing of his party, who have accused him of reneging on a "cast iron" guarantee to offer the public a referendum on the treaty if he becomes prime minister.

Shadow foreign secretary William Hague described Tuesday's events as a "bad day for democracy". But he said it meant the Conservatives' long campaign against the treaty, which will create a President of the European Council and High Representative for Foreign Affairs, effectively a foreign minister, had to come to an end.

Former shadow home secretary David Davis, who was defeated by Mr Cameron for the Conservative Party leadership in 2005, has called for a referendum on Europe within three months of a general election. Writing in the Daily Mail, Mr Davis said the vote was needed to give a negotiating mandate for a future Tory government to take to the EU.

The referendum question should incorporate aims such as "recovering control over our criminal justice, asylum and immigration policies" and a "robust opt-out of the European Charter of Fundamental Rights", he wrote.

Read more: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/politics/8341577.stm

---

Conservatives in Britain are beside themselves in frustration at the progressive movement for further integration in Europe. As one might expect, "law and order" (criminal justice) and immigration rank high on their list of perceived injustices.