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Tag Archives: european union

Opinion: Nick Clegg to set out patriotic case for a reformed Europe

By Adam Nathan | Mon 7th October 2013 - 1:04 pm

In January, I wrote for Liberal Democrat Voice just as British Influence, the cross-party umbrella campaign to keep Britain in Europe, was starting and Prime Minister David Cameron was about to fire the starting gun for an in/out referendum on our EU membership.

Tomorrow in London, Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg will throw his weight back into the debate with an important speech setting out our party’s stall on the pro-European agenda, including our own commitment to an in/out referendum.

Lib Dems will fight the European Parliament elections next year on …

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Posted in Op-eds | Also tagged eu referendum | 12 Comments

The EU is cutting red tape – a victory for the Lib Dems

By Fiona Hall MEP | Fri 4th October 2013 - 11:02 am

On Wednesday the European Commission unveiled a major set of proposals that will significantly cut unnecessary red tape, especially for small businesses, following a sweeping review of all EU legislation. Perhaps the most eye-catching of these was the decision to withdraw proposed health and safety rules that would have banned hairdressers from wearing jewellery and high heels at work. Unsurprisingly, this did not garner anywhere near as much coverage in the tabloid press as when it was first proposed.

Far more important though are the concerted efforts to simplify or repeal overly burdensome and unnecessary EU rules across the board. Commission President Barroso’s recent assertion that the EU needs to be “big on the big things and smaller on the small things” was more than just empty words. As we near the European elections, the Commission is beginning to wake up to the growing tide of euroscepticism and the widely held belief that EU regulation is overly meddlesome.

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Posted in Op-eds | Also tagged red tape | 13 Comments

Sir Graham Watson: Gibraltar will always have the Lib Dems’ backing

By Graham Watson | Tue 10th September 2013 - 1:49 pm

On Sunday 1 September, I was treated to what many of my constituents face on a daily basis, a border queue. I got off rather lightly with 90 minutes. Many Gibraltarians who dare to cross the frontier face delays of over four hours. But they are a hardy lot. They survived eighteen years under Franco with the border closed.

In December 2011, the Liberal Party of Gibraltar, our sister party on the Rock, was elected to office in coalition with the Gibraltar Socialist Labour Party. At about the same time, a general election in Spain saw a moderate Socialist government replaced by the nationalist Popular Party, the party of former dictator General Franco.

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Posted in Op-eds | Also tagged gibraltar | 10 Comments

EU birth certificates myth swallowed whole by the anti-European press

By Giles Goodall | Mon 12th August 2013 - 3:45 pm

It may be the silly season, but the latest Euromyth to ruffle right-wing feathers takes silliness to a whole new level. The Express, Mail, Sun and Telegraph unanimously announced at the weekend that Brussels wants to remove the royal crest from British birth certificates and replace it with the hated EU flag. The Mail declared Brits would be “stamped with the EU flag from the cradle to the grave” while the Sun led with the rather lame “B-EU-rths ‘n deaths”.

They gave generous space to Eric Pickles, who fumed:

This imposed Euro-law is part of an

…

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Posted in News | Also tagged eric pickles and euromyth | 20 Comments

Martin Horwood MP writes… Balance of competence reports shows EU membership is crucial for UK jobs

By Martin Horwood | Mon 22nd July 2013 - 4:53 pm

The Government today published the long awaited first six reports of the review of the balance of competences between EU and national levels, due to be finalised at the end of 2014. The review has been overseen by a Ministerial star chamber with Lord Wallace of Saltaire leading impressively for the Liberal Democrats in the complicated process.

Contrary to the perception in Eurosceptic ranks, this review is not and was never about creating a wish list of demands for unilateral repatriation of powers. Liberal Democrats have been unwavering in our arguments that the EU needs reform to make …

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Posted in Op-eds | Also tagged william wallace | 6 Comments

Liblink… Greg Mulholland calls for referendum on EU membership

By Joe Otten | Mon 15th July 2013 - 11:20 am

The Daily Mail is reporting Greg Mulholland’s call for a vote on EU membership without waiting for a treaty change.

Even the huge changes that have taken place in Europe over the years – we’ve moved from EEC to EC to EU – have not led to a public vote. And it is not a little ironic that at the times there was a significant and constitutional change – in 1984, 1986 and 1992 – the then Conservative governments did not give the British people a say. The same happened under

…

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Posted in Op-eds | Also tagged European referendum and in/out referendum | 5 Comments

Welcome Croatia!

By Joe Otten | Mon 1st July 2013 - 11:01 am

Today sees Croatia’s accession as the 28th member of the European Union. Croatia joins Slovenia, of the former Yugoslavia, which acceded in 2004.

We can sometimes forget in our arguments over EU budgets, CAP reform and the repatriation of powers, just what the bigger picture is. With this accession, the EU is serving to bolster democracy, human rights, and the rule of law in a part of Eastern Europe recently emerged from civil war. It is serving British interests by bringing Western influence to the East, in a manner …

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Posted in News | Also tagged croatia | 18 Comments

Will Ed Miliband “do a John Smith” and push for an early EU in/out referendum? There are advantages, y’know…

By Stephen Tall | Sat 29th June 2013 - 12:05 pm

Could Labour be about to “do a John Smith” to the Tories over the timing of an in/out referendum on the UK’s membership of the European Union?

In the 1990s, Labour wrought havoc on the fourth-term Tory government by (cynically) teaming up with the right-wing ‘Maastricht rebels’ to inflict damaging Commons defeats on their common enemy, John Major.

Could Ed Miliband try and do the same to David Cameron? That’s the hint in today’s Guardian:

Labour is considering backing an in-out referendum on Europe as early as

…

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Posted in News | Also tagged david cameron, ed miliband, eu referendum, john smith, maastricht treaty, nick clegg and paddy ashdown | 5 Comments

Lib Dem MPs to abstain on Tories’ EU in/out referendum bill?

By Stephen Tall | Fri 14th June 2013 - 11:55 am

On 5th July, Tory MP James Wharton’s private member’s bill — laying out Conservative plans for an in-out referendum on the EU in 2017 — will get its second reading.

The Tories are on a three-line whip to support it (very unusual for a private member’s bill). Labour has confirmed they’ll shun the vote, branding the bill “a gimmick, a political stunt”. The Lib Dem parliamentary party will decide its position in a couple of weeks’ time, but is likely to abstain with …

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Posted in Europe / International and News | Also tagged david cameron, eu referendum, featured and mark thompson | 17 Comments

Nick Clegg’s Letter from the Leader: “Of course the EU has to change”

By Stephen Tall | Sun 19th May 2013 - 10:45 am

No prizes for guessing which subject Nick Clegg tackles in his latest weekly letter to supporters: Europe. He rattles through the three positions: ‘calamitous outers’, ‘inconsequential renegotiators’ and ‘achievable reformers’. No prizes for guessing which he identifies with the Lib Dems. Over to Nick…

I’m writing this week’s Letter to you from Kirkwall in Orkney. Alistair Carmichael and Jim Wallace have been trying to persuade me to make the trip for a while and I’ve finally made it in order to join the celebrations of the centenary of Jo Grimond’s birth.

The big debate this week in British politics, which featured strongly in PMQs – where I was standing in for the PM (you can watch it here) – has obviously been about our future role in Europe. An issue on which Jo Grimond was a pioneer and leader.

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Posted in News | Also tagged featured, jo grimond, letter from the leader and nick clegg | 26 Comments

Duncan Hames MP writes… Must we continue to use food for fuel?

By Duncan Hames MP | Fri 17th May 2013 - 8:25 am

The European Union is currently committed to ensuring that 10% of each Member State’s transport energy will come from biofuels by 2020. This originated as a well-intentioned attempt to combat climate change, but time has shown that using food for fuel can have devastating impacts on hunger and the environment. I’ve come to accept that it is time for a re-think.

In addition to concerns over their green credentials, biofuels are now recognised to be a key cause of hunger, affecting millions of people in developing countries. The World Bank, OECD, WTO, IFPRI, IMF, and five other UN agencies recommended …

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Posted in Op-eds | Also tagged actionaid, biofuels, climate change, david cameron, edward davey, food for fuel, justine greening, lynne featherstone, malcolm bruce, nick clegg, norman baker and oxfam | 15 Comments

Opinion: 21st Century Britain will need the European Union

By Sean O'Curneen | Fri 26th April 2013 - 2:50 pm

Britain’s fraught relationship with the EU is perfectly rational. Think of it this way:

– if I have a problem and you solve it for me, I will like you;

– if you create a problem for me, I will not like you;

– if you solve a problem that I don’t have, I might like you, but I don’t need you.

This is exactly what lies at the heart of Britain’s relationship with the EU. Let’s consider what problems the EU solves:

All nation states need to trade their goods. Membership of the EU provides access to the Single Market, the largest market in

…

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Posted in Europe / International and Op-eds | 12 Comments

58% of Lib Dem members against pledging in/out EU referendum in 2015 manifesto

By Stephen Tall | Mon 1st April 2013 - 12:45 pm

Lib Dem Voice polled our members-only forum recently to discover what Lib Dem members think of various political issues, the Coalition, and the performance of key party figures. Some 650 party members have responded, and we’re publishing the full results.

David Cameron has said the next Conservative election manifesto will include a pledge to hold an in/out referendum on the UK’s continuing membership of the European Union. Do you think the next Liberal Democrat manifesto should include the same pledge?

34%

58% – No, it

…

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Posted in LDV Members poll | Also tagged david cameron and European referendum | 12 Comments

Liberal Democrat MEPs lobby for fair distribution of EU funding

By Mark Valladares | Thu 28th March 2013 - 9:20 am

Lib Dem MEPs have welcomed the Coalition Government’s commitment to ensure that cuts to European funding from 2014 onwards will be shared in a fair manner across the UK.

The Coalition Government has announced that England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland will be subjected to an equal percentage cut of around 5% compared to the current 2007-2017 EU funding levels.

MEPs and national governments are currently negotiating the next long-term EU budget for 2014-2020. Although a final deal has yet to be reached, the EU’s budget is expected to be cut in real-terms for the first time in its history.
…

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Posted in Europe / International and News | Also tagged catherine bearder, edward mcmillan-scott and fiona hall | 22 Comments

LibLink: George Lyon MEP – EU budget cuts must not sacrifice research and investment

By Paul Walter | Mon 11th February 2013 - 2:53 pm

Writing on Huffington Post, George Lyon, MEP for Scotland, outlines concerns that the forthcoming round of EU budget reviews does not risk future growth prospects:

The EU Parliament will be scrutinising the proposals closely in the coming weeks before deciding whether to accept or reject the deal in the beginning of March. We must be clear – there are areas of spending that help us generate growth and these need to be our priority going forwards.

One major concern is the proposed funding for the Connecting Europe Facility. This new instrument is set to invest in modern infrastructure such

…

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Posted in LibLink | Also tagged eu budget | 4 Comments

The PM and the EU: Cameron’s zen art of compromise maintenance

By Stephen Tall | Sat 9th February 2013 - 10:25 am

Credit where it’s due. If David Cameron had returned to Britain empty-handed or walked out of the EU budget talks in a fit of pique he’d have been pilloried. Plenty of his opponents were hoping he’d do just that.

As it is, he’s able to boast (not without justification) that he’s successfully negotiated a 3% real-terms cut in the EU budget — to a cumulative €960bn (2014-20) — and protected the British rebate. Nick Clegg, who’s been a particular critic of …

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Posted in Europe / International | Also tagged angela merkel, david cameron, eu budget, featured, james kirkup and the economist | 13 Comments

EU’s Youth Guarantee to end “social emergency” of youth unemployment

By Richard Davis | Fri 1st February 2013 - 8:51 am

Recent economic announcements have been a true rollercoaster ride, with unemployment figures falling to one of the lowest levels, but then national output also falling. This disconnect between unemployment and GDP is still confusing economist, but the real worry is that youth unemployment is doing as expected, if not exceeding expectations. Youth unemployment in the UK now stands at just under 1 million, with over 1 in 5 young people now out of work. This has recently risen to the highest level since 2011.

Across the EU this picture does not improve with youth unemployment standing at 23.7% which equates …

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Posted in News | Also tagged youth unemployment | 5 Comments

Nick Clegg’s letter from the leader: People count

By Joe Otten | Sun 27th January 2013 - 10:20 am

This week Nick covers the economy, the fall in unemployment, the big problem with David Cameron’s speech on the EU, and rounds off with reform of the royal succession.

The point that while the economy is weak, employment is surprisingly strong is something that is perplexing the economists (video) and I’m surprised it doesn’t get more attention.

It hasn’t hit the headlines, perhaps because the fall in unemployment was thought to be a blip. But after over a year, this is clearly something to be welcomed. I’d like to …

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Posted in News | Also tagged act of succession, brexit, economy, letter from the leader, nick clegg and unemployment | 8 Comments

Opinion: Cameron is wishing for an EU that already exists

By Giles Goodall | Fri 25th January 2013 - 11:21 am

The prime objective of David Cameron’s Europe speech was always to placate anti-European critics on his right flank rather than to set out a bold vision in the national interest. And in that sense, his ‘red meat’ pledge of an in/out referendum after 2015 may succeed in sating his own party’s Eurosceptic appetite, at least in the short term. But there are at least three reasons why his strategy is not only mistaken, but risks deeply damaging the national interest.

First, while the ‘repatriationist’ wing of Cameron’s own party may be satisfied with the promise of a renegotiation of as yet …

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Posted in Europe / International and Op-eds | Also tagged single market and sovereignty | 12 Comments

LDVideo: Tim Farron – It would be “completely mad to have a referendum now” on EU

By The Voice | Tue 22nd January 2013 - 8:25 pm

Lib Dem party president Tim Farron — who resigned from the Lib Dem front-bench in 2008 to vote in favour of a referendum on the Libson Treaty — explained today why he thinks it would be “completely mad” to hold a referendum while the UK is tryng to get out of the biggest recession in living memory. You can watch the 2-minute video here:

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Posted in YouTube | Also tagged European referendum and tim farron | 5 Comments

Opinion: A new group to urge close EU ties and fight the growing isolationist tide

By Adam Nathan | Mon 21st January 2013 - 9:53 am

As a Lib Dem member who supports membership of the EU but sometimes finds this hard to verbalise to my friends, I have often noticed that Europe brings out strong opinions in people.

It can be a source of heated argument around the dinner table and on TV studio sofas. The stronger the views on one side, the more entrenched the other can become. Facts can be in short supply.

The hard truth is that Europe represents half of all our trade in

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Posted in Op-eds | Also tagged featured | 16 Comments

The flagrant consistency of the Lib Dems’ position on an in/out EU referendum

By Stephen Tall | Sun 20th January 2013 - 8:55 am

As a follow-up to my post The surprising truth about that Lib Dem in/out EU referendum leaflet — and as a handy guide for journalists in the future — I thought I’d piece together the timeline of the recent history of the Lib Dems’ position on holding a referendum to give the British people a say on our future relationship with the European Union.

As you can see, it’s a picture of quite shocking, erm, consistency…

2007:

Lib Dems (under Ming Campbell) …

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Posted in Europe / International | Also tagged European referendum, featured, Ming Campbell and nick clegg | 19 Comments

LibLink: Guy Verhofstadt thinks that David Cameron would be wrong to leave the EU…

By NewsHound | Fri 18th January 2013 - 3:51 pm

In a piece for the Huffington Post entitled “The UK Is Sleepwalking to the EU Exit. It Is Time to Wake Up”, Guy Verhofstadt, Leader of the Alliance of Liberal and Democrats in Europe (ALDE) Group in the European Parliament, gives a glimpse of the difficulties facing David Cameron in seeking to renegotiate the United Kingdom’s relationship with the European Union. He warns;

Cameron will not succeed if he attempts to hold his European partners to ransom, exchanging acquiescence to EU treaty change over the eurozone for a unilateral repatriation of powers.

and notes, in language that Liberal Democrats would …

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Posted in Europe / International, LibLink and News | Also tagged ALDE, david cameron and guy verhofstadt | 20 Comments

The surprising truth about that Lib Dem in/out EU referendum leaflet*

By Stephen Tall | Thu 17th January 2013 - 1:25 pm

On Monday morning, Nick Clegg was given a hard time on BBC Radio 4’s Today Programme by interviewer Justin Webb, who accused him of changing his position on an EU referendum on the basis of this pictured leaflet (click to enlarge**).

Nick brushed it to one side, correctly pointing out that the party has stuck to its 2010 manifesto pledge (my emphasis):

The European Union has evolved significantly since the last public vote on membership over thirty years ago. Liberal Democrats therefore remain committed to an in/out referendum the next

…

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Posted in Europe / International and News | Also tagged Alistair Carmichael, david heath, European referendum, featured, george eaton, justin webb, nick clegg and tim farron | 33 Comments

Opinion: Businesses, politicians and voters speak against a Brixit

By Richard Davis | Tue 15th January 2013 - 11:23 am

I have long been a fan of the Westwing, and I was recently reminded of a particular scene where President Bartlett faces a difficult decision on whether to reprieve a man on death row or not. His local priest tells him a tale of a man who prays for help, but refuses all assistance when it is offered, claiming that God would save him. However, on his death he is told by St. Peter that God had sent a multitude of people to help him, but he had not accepted any of their help.

This seems to bear some resemblance to the current situation with Cameron floundering on what to do with the European Union. The problem is that recent polling has shown that the Conservative party is losing votes to UKIP and so his backbenchers believe the only way to regain those ‘lost votes’ is to be harder on the EU and call for a Brixit (British exit from the EU).

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Posted in Op-eds | 30 Comments

What Lib Dem members think about an in/out referendum & the future of the UK in Europe

By Stephen Tall | Sun 13th January 2013 - 2:25 pm

Lib Dem Voice polled our members-only forum recently to discover what Lib Dem members think of various political issues, the Coalition, and the performance of key party figures. Some 550 party members have responded, and we’re publishing the full results.

By 2:1 majority, Lib Dems reject new EU referendum

Do you think the Government should or should not call a referendum on Britain’s membership of the European Union?

63% – Should not

5% – Don’t know

And 92% would vote to remain

…

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Posted in LDV Members poll | Also tagged eu referendum and featured | 11 Comments

Vince the Lib Dem Eurosceptic on the “extraordinarily historically important” European single market

By Stephen Tall | Sat 12th January 2013 - 6:10 pm

Vince Cable - Some rights reserved by Liberal Democrats I’m grateful to PoliticsHome’s Paul Waugh for reporting Vince Cable’s words stressing the importance of the EU’s single market at a time of deep austerity in the western world:

“State aide cuts to the heart of the big debate which is rippling though our country at the moment which is about our future within the European Union. I have to say that this whole issue of raising again in a fundamental way British membership and the terms of

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Posted in News | Also tagged paul waugh and vince cable | 25 Comments

LibLink: Ming Campbell – Europe offers the best deal for Britain

By NewsHound | Sat 12th January 2013 - 1:00 pm

Menzies Campbell Former Lib Dem leader Ming Campbell has called on David Cameron to put the national interest ahead of his party’s interest as he prepares for his major speech on Europe:

Those who argue for disengagement in whole or even part have a duty to tell us what the consequences would be. So far they have failed to do so. We need to be rational, not emotional. The issue must be about the essential nature of the relationship, not about squashing the ambitions of Ukip. The EU offers the best deal for Britain.The

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Posted in LibLink | Also tagged angela merkel, Ming Campbell and peter bone | 8 Comments

The Eurosceptic tide is turning. Lib Dems must be in the vanguard

By Giles Goodall | Fri 11th January 2013 - 10:21 am

We have become used in recent months to unrelentingly bad news about our relationship with Europe. ‘UKIP now the third party’, ‘Majority would say no to EU’ and ‘UK heads for the Brexit’ have become commonplace headlines. But while the current polls and general debate are still far from positive, several recent developments suggest the tide is starting to turn on the antis – and are enough to give cheer to pro-Europeans from all sides.

First – in case you missed it – the Obama administration has made clear in no uncertain terms to its concern about the UK’s Eurosceptic …

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Posted in Europe / International and Op-eds | Also tagged barack obama and ukip | 40 Comments

Opinion: Norway? No way! Why a life on Europe’s periphery is not an option for Britain

By Giles Goodall | Sun 23rd December 2012 - 4:35 pm

Norweigan coast In Britain’s recent EU debate, it’s clear that the anti-Europeans have been doing most of the running. When they’re not basing their arguments on wholesale lies, they fall back on a mixture of half-truths, assumptions and wishful thinking. One of the best examples is the common claim that Britain can leave the EU but keep trading with the Single Market, ’just like Norway’. A have-your-cake-and-eat-it solution that sounds like the best of both worlds. They highlight the non-EU country’s considerable oil wealth – irrelevant to the membership debate – to drive home their point.

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Posted in Europe / International and Op-eds | Also tagged Norway | 24 Comments