A voice from London. Whatever the fate of the Lisbon Treaty, it will be of decisive importance for the issue of the two-speed Europe (see this section in yesterday's bulletin). If this treaty enters into force, it will pave the way for different forms of cooperation, allowing those countries which wish to reinforce European integration to do so; if it fails, the desire of certain member states to move forward in any case will be consolidated, and the countries which wish to will participate. In either scenario, the attitude of the United Kingdom will be decisive. The speech by William Hague, which we quoted in our bulletin yesterday, confirms this impression. Mr Hague is the Conservative spokesperson and likely future British foreign minister, if his party wins next year's elections. Whilst speaking out against the institutional centralisation which will be stepped up should the Lisbon Treaty enter into force, he recommended new alliances with non-EU countries (particularly Commonwealth countries) and voiced his distrust of the European defence policy, which he feels would impinge on NATO territory. Not surprisingly, he recommended the rapid enlargement of the EU to all of the Balkan states and Turkey.
Confusion in the ranks of the British Eurosceptics of the European Parliament. As we can see, strengthening the EU is not central to Mr Hague's concerns. Nor is it the main concern of the new political group of the European Parliament created around the British Conservative MEPs, the ECR (European Conservatives and Reformists). David Cameron has achieved the objective of withdrawing his troops from the EPP political group; but the group, which he built around them, is nonetheless a cause for concern with him. In order to reach the required size and obligatory number of nations, the new Eurosceptic group has had to open its doors to certain figures who lack the democratic traditions of the British Conservative party, and appointed Poland's Michal Kaminski as its candidate for the vice-presidency of Parliament.
The rebellion led by Mr Edward McMillan Scott scuppered these plans. The Scottish MEP, who was vice-president of the EP in its previous configuration, described Mr Kaminski as homophobic and racist and put himself forward as an alternative candidate for the same post, and he went down very much better with his peers. Mr Cameron had to intervene from London, inviting Mr McMillan Scott to leave the ECR group; and in order to "compensate" Michal Kaminski, he appointed him president of this group, a position previously allocated to the British Conservative Timothy Kirkhope, who had just about had time to put forward the idea of getting together with the EPP to create a stable and permanent coalition to prevent the EPP from having to join ranks with the Socialists. The first act of this alliance would be to vote together to confirm Mr Barroso as president of the European Commission. In the meantime, however, the EPP had re-established its technical agreements with the Socialists, and Guy Verhofstadt had launched the alliance between the pro-European groups, to include, on a number of dossiers, the Greens…
With its new President, the ECR is very much running the risk of remaining out on the sidelines, unless it joins forces with the new group, which wants the UK to leave the EU, and other Europhobes…
The British people will choose. According to Alain Lamassoure, the entire edifice of British membership of the EU is crumbling away, and he put forward any number of examples: "the glorious pound Sterling swallowed up at the level of an insular currency; the alliance with the Kaczinski brothers and with Vaclav Klaus; 13 MEPs elected on nothing more than a leaving-the-EU ticket...". He quoted a phrase from the Financial Times: the British "are sleepwalking on the outskirts of Europe". I do not subscribe to his tone, which fell somewhere between apocalyptic and sympathetic (and barely softened up by a parting sentence of confidence in Mr Lamassoure's text). The people of the United Kingdom are free to make their own choice and know what they are doing. Let's not start giving lessons in democracy to those who taught all of Europe.
If the British confirm their rejection of the euro, if they would rather stay on the sidelines of increased European unity, if they wish to leave the EU (the Lisbon Treaty will make this legally possible), then they may do so. Arrangements will be made for the best possible regulation of reciprocal relations; appropriate examples and instruments already exist. But let us not forget that British political forces in favour of European integration exist, and these are not negligible.
Besides, the need to choose applies to more than just the United Kingdom. The European motivations of other member states and certain candidate countries (Iceland being the latest example) must be clarified, with each population being free to choose. I will return to this subject.
(F.R./transl.fl)