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    Tide turns against Cameron as Commons savages EU veto failure

    By Ian Dunt

    David Cameron has endured one of his toughest afternoons in the Commons, as MPs from across the political spectrum attacked his performance in Brussels.

    The prime minister faced opposition from Labour frontbenchers, Tory backbenchers and members of his own Cabinet on a day that saw the goodwill he won after his late-night veto last year evaporate.

    "With this prime minister a veto is not for life, it's just for Christmas," Ed Miliband told the chamber, to raucous laughter from the Labour benches.

    "The phantom veto is now exposed. This agreement involves the European courts of justice, the European Commission, the buildings of the EU and 25 out of the 27 EU countries.

    "It talks like a European treaty. It walks like a European treaty. It is a European treaty."

    Mr Miliband, who was widely credited with one of his most confident and effective performances at the despatch box, continued: "For Britain he has secured absolutely no protections at all. Even his backbenchers say they can't believe a word he says.

    "Britain stands with less influence than we have for a generation."

    Mr Cameron, who looked deeply uncomfortable throughout the session, told Mr Miliband: "I'll deal with my backbenchers, you deal with yours."

    Despite his best efforts, the benches behind the prime minister stayed sullen and silent through most of the session.

    "We will watch this closely and if necessary we will take action, including legal action, if our national interests are threatened by the misuse of the institutions," Mr Cameron promised.

    "This is a treaty outside the EU. We are not signing it. We did not ratify it and it places no obligation on the UK. There will be no inner group of EU countries distorting the single market via the treaty."

    Tory backbencher Mark Reckless showed how dangerous events had become for the prime minister when he sarcastically asked: "Will the prime minister explain precisely what he's vetoed?"

    Former foreign secretary Jack Straw said: "How can the prime minister possibly say that in substance this is not the same as a European treaty?"

    Mr Cameron replied: "It's outside EU law because I made it outside EU law."

    The stormy session capped off a difficult day for Mr Cameron, who admitted last night he would not prevent members of the new fiscal union from using institutions designed for the full EU.

    He was also forced to accept that many aspects of the fiscal union were permissible under EU law, limiting Britain's ability to oppose them.

    Two members of Cabinet – Iain Duncan Smith and Owen Paterson – reportedly spoke out against Mr Cameron during this morning's Cabinet meeting.

    Mr Duncan Smith raised concerns about the use of EU institutions by the new 25-strong fiscal grouping, while Mr Paterson engaged in what was reported to be a more general debate on the eurozone.

    It was difficult for Mr Duncan Smith to adopt a different approach after he offered categorical assurances on national television this weekend that the prime minister had vetoed the fiscal grouping from using EU institutions.

    With an influential Cabinet secretary to lead the malcontents on the Tory backbenches, the eurosceptic wing of the party now presents a much more dangerous threat to the prime minister.

    Tory backbencher Douglas Carswell said the veto had "fallen apart" and that last night's manoeuvres in Brussels were "final proof that we cannot trust politicians to make Europe policy".

    Last year, 81 Tory backbenchers rebelled against the party whip on an EU vote, revealing the depth of potential opposition to events on the continent.

     

    19 comments

    • cru  •  3 months ago
      Well we now know camoron is no better than the rest, he is just another liar, a veto for xmas,.
    • DEREK W  •  Pittsburgh, United States  •  3 months ago
      get rid of this judas...,.let us have someone with a backbone in charge....
    • William Davies  •  London, England  •  3 months ago
      I just don,t get it. Over the last year we,ve had more blogs about how Cameron willget us out of the European Union by all the Tory diehards, and what do we get. Abloody limp wristed hand wringer who when he see,s Sarkozy (The short arsed pimpfrom France) and ( the butch #$%$ from Berlin) rolls on his back and agrees to every proposition put to him. This is NOT the man who will give us a referendum on Europe. A referendum we all crave. Even if short sighted arrogant tossers in Parliament can,t see the writing on the wall, at least the electorate can see where all these emergency summits are leading. It,s a place where sane people just do not want to go, and sooner rather than later our bloody idiotic pol;iticians will get the message. When they do, please people, take a note of all those mp,s who would rather sheepishly follow their party line, rather than excercise some grey matterand vote for the peoples wishes. Those Bast-rds must never again enter Parliament and supposedly represent the people of this country.
    • S.M. N  •  3 months ago
      Cameron has shown his true colours. He is a man that will vote whichever way he needs to in order to get good press coverage but at the heart.. at his very core.. he is an elitist that ONLY did what he did at Christmas to help his Banker friends.. What you all are not understanding is this...

      The thing that Cameron voted AGAINST at Christmas.. was a tax on financial transactions which would have hurt his friends in the City.. the same fat cats that gave us the recession

      The reason he hasnt voted against THIS is because this does not effect his banker friends.

      Cameron never stood up for the UK in Brussels.. he stood up for the Big Money boys in the City of London.. THAT is his constituency and those are the people that will take care of him once he leaves office.
    • ALICE  •  Birmingham, England  •  3 months ago
      it would be nice to see an mp that did not tell lies i know this is asking too much but you never know one day we may get a decent mp but dont hold your breath
    • Uncle Tom  •  Sheffield, England  •  3 months ago
      What can you expect from a condem U-turn party
    • Silver  •  Wilmslow, England  •  3 months ago
      cameron is a TRAITOR just like the rest of the TREACHEROUS politicians who are RAPING our country, they should ALL be dragged out into the street and hung from lampposts.
      Dirty little SELL-OUT BASTAGES.
    • tupsin  •  Maidenhead, England  •  3 months ago
      The Conmoron showeth his true colors at last WHOOP WHOOP
    • thatshallott  •  St Albans, England  •  3 months ago
      Vote UKIP or BNP, the ONLY parties with the good of the British at heart!
      • dave 3 months ago
        All my family vote british national party BNP, and always will...Wake up people it really is getting late in the day........The CONTROLLED media think that your all brain dead and that you will always take notice of what they say...Stop voteing for the party with three names, Lib Lab Con..........
    • martin  •  3 months ago
      Cameron = Spineless, gutless, JUDAS
    • Copius  •  3 months ago
      Germany lost the war but are making up for it now!
    • REGINALD L  •  London, England  •  3 months ago
      After this mess i will never vote tory againg they cant be trusted on the E.U we were sold
      out Lets see his back bench get us a referendum to show they can be trusted.
      Im very sorry we all might as well vote labour they will do the same thing at least we will be rid
      of lib dems
      • Santiago 3 months ago
        Do you actually admit to voting Tory?Is it any wonder that we Scots want to go our own way - at least we dont vote for that shower of #$%$
    • DEREK W  •  Pittsburgh, United States  •  3 months ago
      what a wimp.....an utter disaster....get a backbone cameron
    • tracy  •  London, England  •  3 months ago
      i`d love to see his backbenchers join ukip as one. leave the slimey #$%$ with only his treacherous libdem numptys for support, he would be forced to call a general election then.
    • Billy  •  London, England  •  3 months ago
      PEOPLESPLEDGE . ORG
      Out of Europe our own way, the government does not represent the people.
    • Santiago  •  Aberdeen, Scotland  •  3 months ago
      Cameron has shown that his veto is meaningless he has proved that “Great Britain” has no power so how can an independent Scotland be even more impotent? He is a non leader who is standing on a platform of fresh air. He has no mandate from the British people yet he behaves like he had won the last general election. His word is meaningless and his intellect suspect?

      Size has nothing to do with self determination; the Isle of Man is a tiny island, but it is part of the UK and still has its own parliament. The Channel Islands are part of the UK, but are virtually independent in regard to taxation etc. No country is truly independent of any other. But we can co-exist by having our right to self-determination, mutual respect and open trade with each other. Scotland does not need to be part of a Great Britain - which is no longer "great" and the "UK" or its constituent parts does not need to be part of the EU. Let the people decide in both cases - true democracy at work.

      The SNP were elected on a platform, which stated there would be a referendum on Scottish independence in 2014. They have never hidden that an independent Scotland is one of their major aims. Although they believe in independence, they realise that they cannot do this without the support of the majority of the Scottish people; hence the need for a referendum. They are neither railroading independence nor forcing it on the Scottish people. A referendum is the ultimate form of democracy; if it had been up to the Conservative Party no referendum on a Scottish government would have ever have taken place. In fact, Tony Blair only had a referendum because he was convinced that the Scottish people would not vote for a Scottish Parliament. When he was proved wrong the powers that be set up the voting system in such a way that they thought that no single party would ever have a working majority.
      The victory of the SNP in winning an overall majority is remarkable and should not be underestimated. The SNP are not extremist, nor are their leaders dictatorial quite the reverse. It has to be remembered that there is only one single Scottish Conservative MP at Westminster; David Cameron did not win an overall majority in the last UK general election and certainly has no significant support north of the border. He is being propped up by the Liberal Democrats, who have many Scottish MPs at Westminster - who will undoubtedly lose their seats at the next election for their treachery in inflicting a right wing government on the people of Scotland.
      Under the present system, because of the huge difference in population - which is reflected in the number of English/Scottish seats at Westminster, Scotland is effectively disenfranchised. One of the main catalysts for independence was the premiership of Margaret Thatcher, who inflicted her policies on Scotland in spite of having no mandate or support in Scotland. This is not an anti-English vote, but a pro-Scottish vote. I cannot understand why some English people are accusing us Scots as being financial parasites one minute, then acting all offended and becoming quite racist in their anti-Scottish comments because we wish to decide on our own future. The Conservatives do not wish the Scottish people to decide their own future; neither do the Labour Party nor the Liberal Democrats; they are anti democracy because they do not want to give the people a say. This is also true of their failure to support a referendum on the EU. They spout nonsense like "it is the wrong question at the wrong time" what sort of patronising rubbish is this? Too often, our MPs forget who they are supposed to be representing and vote according to the whips instructions; this is not democracy this is conning the electorate. We need to waken up and smell the coffee [fair trade of course]. I am not a member of any political party so I do not have anyone pulling my strings when I make my honest comments.
    • Leonidas  •  Wigan, England  •  3 months ago
      referendum on membership of the fouth reich NOW!
    • petro  •  3 months ago
      Ask camoron if it comes down to legalities and a court is he footing the expenses or the taxpayer again and we think we know the answer on this one already.
    • David C  •  Manningtree, England  •  3 months ago
      Bring back Maggie....she would fight for us
      • ALUN 3 months ago
        yeah, the low-life #$%$ would fight alright, she'd fight to destroy society like before.Still a few million house repossetions and record bankrupsies would take our minds of our current problems. Rot in hell #$%$.
      • JO 3 months ago
        i think not maggies not for fighting then or now david
      • ALICE 3 months ago
        thatcher was the start of this countrys doom she is a traiter just like camaron