“Britain will only win the case in Brussels for a flexible, democratic Europe is we settle our arguments at home on whether we should be part of the EU or not. That is why Liberal Democrats have argued for a referendum on whether Britain stays in or leaves the EU.”

This is repeated on page 17 of the document.

However, the manifesto is no longer available on the new Lib Dems website.

Mae It Happen said the same thing, but that is not on the website either.

Both these documents were approved by conference.

The Europe briefing on the site does not mention a referendum

The Pocket Guide to Policy (updated June 2009) does not mention a referendum.

I conclude therefore that a referendum is still policy. It is included in the platform upon which Lib Dem MEPs were elected. It has not been overturned by conference.

However, I also conclude that Ming is reflecting the wish from the Party’s fantatical pro-European’s that this pledge had never been made. He was the one who first made it. Clegg inherited it.

Ming’s u-turn begins the process of the Party ‘airbrushing’ the policy from view.

There will be some MPs most miffed at this – they see it as an important shield agianst the Tories.

How important the issue of Europe will be at the election is open to question.

But Lib Dem MPs will be asked. They can’t avoid it.

Time for some clarity from the top.

Them and Lib Dem/UKIP switchers and Lab/UKIP switchers, of whom there are many.

For the first time in a long while the arguments on both sides would receive a clearer airing than they have received in a very long time.

If you place the facts before the public I am sure the public would overwhelmingly support the Union continuing.

But I bear in mind “cognitive activist” George Lakoff’s (“Don’t Think Of An Elephant”, “The Political Brain”) argument that the facts aren’t enough to win a public argument.

This Union of ours needs an Abraham Lincoln: someone who can put a case for it based on the public’s values.

For all the noise that Eurosceptics and the tabloids make, Europe is simply not a salient issue for the vast majority of voters in a general election. This is repeatedly shown in the monthly Ipsos MORI issues index – the latest one (here: http://bit.ly/8oGotG ) shows that only 1% of voters believe it to be the most important issue and only 3% believe it to be an important issue at all.

In so far as British voters care about Europe as a political issue, the biannual Eurobarometer poll shows opinion in the UK divided roughly one-third pro-European, one-third anti-European and one-third with no strong feelings either way. These proportions have not shifted significantly in recent years.

The party’s referendum policy was originally cobbled together only to provide cover for its MPs in the south-west when the constitution was an issue. Even so, it shouldn’t waste any more time trying to finesse the referendum issue. Most voters don’t care and won’t notice what the party thinks, let alone appreciate any subtle nuances the party concocts.

Do we believe in democracy or not?

I have no particular objection to the EU, or our membership of it, but the cynicism it provokes – in my view – is a significant threat to our system of democracy.

Basically Lord Pearson the new leader of UKIP said he wanted UKIP to do well so Tories would lose to Lib Dems because the Lib Dems would hold a referendum. In response, Ming Campbell made it absolutely plain that there is no longer a Lib Dem pledge to have an in/our referendum.

I was, therefore, very surprised to see this reported.

There wouldn’t be any point at the moment, the result would be a victory for monarchismn and as far as I’m aware there’s no significant campaign to abolish the monarchy.

“the first past the post system”

We might if the Lib Dems win an election.

“the union of England and Scotland”

Scotland may have one if independence becomes a popular position.

“whether to have English as the national language”

Stupid comparison, since when was the status of our national language the subject of political debate?

“or whether they should bring back Jackanory.”

Not something the government can do.

“We must resist the Europhobic insistence that we keep having referendums until we get it right. We voted for ever closer union and that’s that done and dusted.”

We voted for a common market. And even if we had voted for ever closer union it’s currently a very unpopular position. Are you seriously suggesting that the British Parliament’s ability to make legislation and therefore obey the will of the British people should be increasingly stripped away without any consultation?

Still annoyed at how everybody is quick to group as “europhile” and “eurosceptic”. The euroreformist side is real too.

But there remains no formal mechanism in parliament to gauge such public opinion. The Wright Commission pointed towards some kind of agenda initiative system to enable the public to raise issues with Parliament – let’s see how that works out.

Meanwhile, whether you think referendums are the answer or not, the fact remains that the UK does not have an adequate system for dealing with things like European Treaties. They are clearly more binding than standard legislation (anyone who tells you Lisbon had no constitutional implications for the UK is talking out of their arse). Most countries have ways to deal with this: Germany requires a supermajority in both House of Parliament to ratify treaties for instance. Until the Lib Dems come up with some kind of mechanism for dealing with this I fear our credibility on this issue will continue to be undermined.