Printer Friendly
The Free Library
19,607,059 articles and books
Member login
User name  
Password 
 
Join us Forgot password?

CAM'S EURO SCAM; ToryBoy's flip-flop on the people who elected him leader.


Byline: By OONAGH BLACKMAN Political Editor in Brussels

DAVID Cameron Editing of this page by unregistered or newly registered users is currently disabled due to vandalism.  looks set for yet another embarrassing flip-flop over a cynical pledge he made to Tory Eurosceptics.

Cameron bought the leadership votes of his party's right wing by promising to pull his MEPs out of the European People's Party People's party: see Populist party.  - a coalition made up of centre-right politicians in the European Parliament.

But it means Tory MEPs will have to link up with extremist right-wing groups from across Europe - or go it alone and become powerless.

Now Cameron is desperately trying to backtrack on his pledge, even though he risks a damaging Tory Euro split similar to the one that dogged John Major's leadership.

Ex-Tory Cabinet minister Michael Portillo Michael Denzil Xavier Portillo (born 26 May 1953) is an English journalist, broadcaster, and former Conservative party politician and Cabinet Minister. Early life
Born Michael Denzil Portillo in Bushey in Hertfordshire, England, Portillo took the name Xavier
 said yesterday: "This has been a real howler.

"The people who demanded this pledge have to understand he simply has to go back on it and do something different.

"To get into such a mess on something the British electorate doesn't give a fig about is a major error. It was a moment of weakness."

If Cameron does pull his 26 Tory MEPs out of the EPP (1) (Enhanced Parallel Port) See IEEE 1284.

(2) (Ethernet Packet Processor) A chip from Kalpana, Inc., Santa Clara, CA that doubles speed of Ethernet transmission to 20Mbits/sec. In 1994, Kalpana was acquired by Cisco.
 to join extremist groups from Poland, Latvia and Lithuania, he will be frozen out by key leaders, such as Germany's Angela Merkel.

But Tory Eurosceptics, including MP Bill Cash, insist the vow was "non-negotiable."

Yesterday, Cameron's Europe spokesman Graham Brady admitted: "It will be an important reflection on his authority as leader. He wants to do it, but I can't say when."

One delighted Labour minister said Cameron had made a massive blunder. He added: "If Cameron doesn't deliver on his pledge, his credibility will be shot to pieces.

"It was a massive blunder to make this promise to the right-wing loonies in his Party to win their leadership votes. The truth is Cameron is a right-wing Eurosceptic and always has been."

o.blackman@mirror.co .uk

CAPTION(S):

BLUNDER: Cameron may have to break vow' EURO SPLIT: Major
COPYRIGHT 2006 MGN LTD
No portion of this article can be reproduced without the express written permission from the copyright holder.
Copyright 2006 Gale, Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.

 Reader Opinion

Title:

Comment:



 

Article Details
Printer friendly Cite/link Email Feedback
Publication:The Mirror (London, England)
Date:Jun 16, 2006
Words:322
Previous Article:At last Rod has divorced and we can get married; PENNY LANCASTER WEDDING EXCLUSIVE.
Next Article:Why we stashed pounds 38,000 in house.

Terms of use | Copyright © 2012 Farlex, Inc. | Feedback | For webmasters | Submit articles