I don't believe that there's a lack of debate in the Conservative Party about the European Union in general, and in particular about whether or not Britain should be in the EU. I therefore couldn't resist responding to a letter last week in the Daily Telegraph that called for the party to engage in a more vigorous discussion about our place in the EU. My response was printed last Friday.
Regrettably the Telegraph published my letter under the sub-headline 'Conservatives in favour of withdrawal from the EU have lost the debate'. If you read my letter, you'll see I never made such an accusation. True, I said that the debate was not going the way the withdrawalists want it to. But I would never pull down the curtain on any debate about any subject in our party. I am also fully respectful of the rule that ultimately the party leader in consultation with the shadow cabinet has the final say on key policy issues. In fact, too often I think we're afraid of debating the EU internally because we're worried about being portrayed in the media as obsessives of various colours.
However, I also made the point in my letter that on ConHome, the EU as a subject for discussion and blogging is perhaps the most popular of all. Certainly if you look at the 'category cloud' on the Tory Diary page, 'Europe' comes a close second to 'MPs' duties and remuneration'. Whenever I post on ConHome the discussion usually veers off into a battle between proponents and opponents of Britain's EU membership (BOOs and BINs), even if I am writing about something that has only a peripheral relevance to the subject.
It's clear to me, therefore, that debate about this seminal issue is thriving at grass-roots level. I am sure that at the forthcoming Conservative conference in Manchester there will be many fringe events either pushing for greater engagement with the EU or calling for withdrawal - and perhaps even a few events endorsing a position somewhere in between.
I don't doubt for a minute that there are many activists who would like to see Britain outside the EU. I meet them all the time on the doorstep. So too does a nameless PCC who rang my London office after my letter was published to complain that I had made his life more difficult for saying what I had, even though he admitted he hadn't read my letter and had only picked up on it through a 'Tory split on Europe' headline in the London Daily News. There are also a few Conservative parliamentarians, including my esteemed MEP colleagues Roger Helmer and Daniel Hannan, who are openly supportive of withdrawal.
The Tory party is nothing if not a democratic party, and I believe that if there was an overwhelming desire across the country to withdraw from the EU then this would inevitably become the party's policy. However, one of the most recent polls (Sunday Telegraph ICM) suggests that despite UKIP's efforts to portray the matter of withdrawal as settled and enjoying the support of a majority of Britons, supporters of leaving the EU are in fact in a minority nationwide, albeit a sizeable one of 40 per cent.
I believe also that arguing for Britain to leave the EU is a legitimate position to take, albeit not one I agree with. I also concede that there may come a day when I will be persuaded that withdrawal is the right option. I have never been an absolutist - unlike some more dogmatic politicians - and I have always been willing to change my mind according to the facts.
However, I also believe that we Conservatives must now make a stronger case for what the EU can achieve in Britain’s interests, particularly following the creation of the ECR Group in the European Parliament and the possibility of a transnational political party in the pipeline. We need to develop further our ideas of reform and avoid peddling myths about the EU as UKIP does in order to try to make the case for Britain abandoning the EU.
One such myth was peddled by UKIP leadership candidate Lord Pearson of Rannoch in a letter to the Telegraph the day after mine. He ludicrously suggested that the Commission cooks up all this intrusive legislation in complete secrecy. His letter blatantly ignored the fact that the Commission's legislative programme, which is published in advance, is debated vigorously in the European Parliament and national parliaments. He also alleged that the European Parliament doesn't dare amend or veto any laws for fear of derailing the European project. Well, that’s news to me and other Conservative MEPs, who analyse and assess dozens - sometimes hundreds - of amendments every week on every item of legislation. Lord Pearson's letter also belies the fact that the European Parliament was congratulated by the British press for promoting key pieces of legislation such as the services directive or chemicals directive (known as REACH) that were then blocked by member state governments in the Council.
But as I said in my letter, the Conservative Party has never advocated withdrawal and I can't see that position changing for the foreseeable future. Indeed, David Cameron has made it clear that he will not give front bench positions to MPs who advocate such a move. It's no surprise that opponents of Britain's EU membership claim that their point of view is not given a sufficient airing within the party. But this website alone is enough to prove wrong that premise. Those who support our withdrawal from the EU have a wealth of resources at their disposal to influence opinion within the party and the public at large. They are far more restless, more enterprising and more energetic in pursuing their cause than most on the pro-membership wing of the party.
The debate is not going in their direction right now, and I, like the majority of Conservative MEPs, believe in the party's position that there is a strong case to be made for fighting within the EU for the kind of future arrangements with Europe that we want. But I would never say that the debate is over, or that withdrawalists have lost the debate. In fact one of the problems with Britain's EU membership is precisely that neither side will ever totally concede defeat irrespective of public opinion, which is why even a referendum on membership as advocated by the Liberal Democrats would not definitively settle the matter, particularly as the result would in all probability be close either way.
Lastly, if previous experience is anything to go by I'm anticipating a few responses to this post that will confirm the debate is as robust as ever...
