Lib Dems insist EU treaty 'good for Britain'
Tuesday, 18 September 2007 12:00 AM
The proposed European Union treaty is good for the UK, the Liberal Democrats said today.
Defending the EU treaty at the Liberal Democrat conference in Brighton, the party's foreign affairs spokesman Michael Moore said it was essential the EU reformed its institutions to meet new demands from an expanded membership and new challenges such as climate change.
Mr Moore accepted the government line that the treaty is not the same as the abandoned constitution.
He told delegates: "The style and the trappings are gone.
"Significant changes have been made to the charter of fundamental rights and to the British involvement in justice and home affairs.
"More explicit statements have been made about what will happen, and more importantly what will not happen, in creating common foreign policy positions."
He accused the Conservatives - who argue the treaty retains much of the constitution and therefore requires a referendum - of misleading the debate and hiding their real agenda.
Mr Moore argued the treaty was less significant for Britain than the Maastricht Treaty, which the Conservative government had accepted without a referendum.
He continued: "The truth is that for the Conservatives this is a battle about whether or not we stay in the European Union."
Mr Moore backed the Liberal Democrat leader Menzies Campbell and called for an honest debate about the UK's role in the EU in order to address the issue head on.
In his keynote foreign policy speech to conference, Mr Moore argued for a principled, multilateral approach to foreign policy, pushing for a greener, global outlook.
He argued Britain should build a new "special relationship" with Europe while re-examining its ties with America.
Mr Moore called on Mr Brown to openly state the UK would not back military action against Iran. While arguing Tehran must not be allowed to develop nuclear weapons, he argued this should be pursued by economic sanctions.
He challenged Gordon Brown to show a radical reversal of Tony Blair's foreign policy, rather than re-branding around the edges.
Crucial to this must be setting a timetable for removing troops from Iraq, with the Liberal Democrats demanding all British personnel are out within six months.
This would allow the military to focus on Afghanistan, where troops are under resourced "as a direct consequence" of the decision to go into Iraq, he argued.
While welcoming Gordon Brown's commitment to Darfur, he said this must be matched by action, with UN forces in place by the end of the year.
Sanctions must also be tightened against Robert Mugabe, Mr Moore argued. The UK must take the moral argument against the Zimbabwean leader and insist he is barred from the EU Summit with Africa scheduled for later this year.
His comments followed Sir Menzies', who yesterday called for UN action against the Mugabe regime.
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