Cameron cheered by the Lib Dems, spared by the Tories, mocked by Labour
Peter Hoskin 5:08pm
If you wanted proof that Cameron has softened his stance towards Europe since the hard chill of December, then just look to the Lib Dems. Nick Clegg, unlike then, was sat next to the Prime Minister as he gave his statement to the Commons this afternoon. And the questions that followed from the likes of Menzies Campbell and Simon Hughes were generally warm and approving. Campbell started by, in his words, ‘praising the pragmatism of the PM’. Hughes celebrated a ‘more successful and satisfactory summit than the one in December’.
That praise, while friendly enough, creates obvious problems for Cameron — and it was those problems that Ed Miliband sought to exploit in his questions to the PM. The Labour leader's basic inquiry was ‘what exactly have you vetoed?’ And he made it with more force and panache than he can normally muster. The Labour benches laughed as Miliband quoted Cameron's past assertions about the use of EU institutions for the fiscal compact, and then laughed some more as he listed how those assertions have now been overturned. Ed Balls kept braying in the background, ‘what a joke’.
Cameron looked rattled, but he recovered some ground. His lifeline was Miliband's own vacillation over Europe. Would the Labour leader have signed Britain up to this fiscal union? Or would he have put his eurosceptic-sounding rhetoric into action, and not? ‘He's had 53 days to make up his mind,’ said Cameron, but the answer's still not clear. Miliband did suggest that Britain's interest would be better served by somehow, maybe, possibly, being more involved with the new treaty than we are. But it's a much less clear position than Cameron's own ‘We are not signing it, we are not part of it, we are not ratifying it, it doesn't place any obligations on Britain...’ even after the softening exercises of the past few days.
Cameron was also helped, more or less, by his own backbenchers. There were a few awkward questions, of course, but they were from unsurprising quarters and were less fierce than they might have been. Bill Cash, for instance, didn't attack the PM directly, but only asked whether we're on a ‘slippery slope’ to a ‘more federal, more coercive’ Europe. Similarly, Bernard Jenkin chose to warn Cameron about the new fiscal union subverting the EU institutions against Britain's interests. They're not exactly happy, but they didn't unleash their full anger this afternoon.
In sum, the political gains that Cameron made in December have probably been eroded by today's theatre. But one sparkier performance from Ed Miliband is no substitute for clear policy. No amount of sparky performances ever will be.
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roger parkin
January 31st, 2012 5:30pm Report this commentFor all his bluster miliband was shown up to be weak and indecisive in comparison to cameron. As for nick clegg if his party are happy why did he look so miserable throughout?
Paddy
January 31st, 2012 5:42pm Report this commentDoes anyone else think the Labour party aren't fit to be an opposition?
Rhoda Klapp
January 31st, 2012 5:52pm Report this commentCameron went along in Brussels, can't be seen as the one making waves and get the blame for the upcoming euro crash. Tory backbenchers went along with him, can't be seen to be rocking the coalition boat and get the blame for bringing it down.
Go along to get along. Don't pull the pin on the only grenade we've got. Only neither Cameron nor the backbench are ever going to pull the pin. Weasels. Is this the government we deserve? Probably.
Sean O'Hare
January 31st, 2012 5:55pm Report this commentIf anyone needed more proof that the boy is not a Eurosceptic and is not willing to bat for UK sovereignty here it is.
David Parker
January 31st, 2012 6:25pm Report this commentCameron's first mistake was to claim credit for a "veto" which never existed, except as a threat to veto a future treaty which had not even been drafted at that time.
He thus left himself a hostage to fortune, outwitted (which would not be difficult) by both the Merkosy ugly sisters. Our heavily europhile FCO mandarins no doubt also connived at this, leaving Cameron with EU (still,illegally, battery produced) egg all over his face.
To be fair, Cameron started from a weak negotiating position but, due probably to bad advice, having fallen into the trap of seeking short term popularity by insincere sabre rattling, he is now seen as having handled these negotiations both weakly and incompetently.
Vulture
January 31st, 2012 6:26pm Report this commentPhew! What a relief.
For more than a month we Dave haters who know that Cameron is a two-tongued, double-dealing Europhile little weasel who pretended to be a tinsy-winsy bit Eurosceptic just to get through Xmas without being chewed alive by his party, and gained a few brownies with a hugely Eurosceptic public into the bargain - have had to bite our tongues.
Now we can revert to our default position. We all know he's a treacherous EU-obeying, Clegg appeasing puffball. Shame that it takes an A-grade plonker like Milipede to point it out.
Deepsnoozer
January 31st, 2012 6:41pm Report this commentCameron is an astonishingly poor PM!! He's making us a laughing stock across the world.. We will always be the "junior partner" as long as he's in charge!!
Halcyondaze
January 31st, 2012 6:42pm Report this commentVulture:
What a post! Couldn't have put it better myself!
I will not be voting Conservative again until they get rid of this man - and it's clear to me that the Conservatives are losing support amongst the grass roots by the day.
UKIP get my vote and I don't care a toss if that helps Labour. The Conservatives are now just as bad. Maggie must be disgusted.
Damon Hager
January 31st, 2012 6:48pm Report this comment@Vulture. You say this: "Now we can revert to our default position. We all know he's a treacherous EU-obeying, Clegg appeasing puffball. Shame that it takes an A-grade plonker like Milipede to point it out."
And it takes plonkers like you, and fools like Bill Cash, to subvert a Conservative-led government (the best guarantor of British independence) and give aid and comfort to the Labour Party and their de facto UKIP allies.
So Dave is a cheerleader for a federal Europe, is he? Nonsense. He's making the best fist of a politically-fraught negotiating position. You remind me, above all, of the single-issue fanatics who did so much to bring down John Major, and so much to propel Tony Blair to power. And did that really help your cause?
Well done, Dave. REAL Tories are behind you.
MilkSnatcher
January 31st, 2012 7:03pm Report this commentNot sure anything said in the Lower Chamber is worth reporting when it comes to Europe. At best it's nothing more than mood-music and dog-whistling. If Maggie can sign the Single European Act then Cammers will sign up to almost anything Sarko and Merko can possibly shove up him.
Barbara
January 31st, 2012 7:27pm Report this commentWell I watched the scene in parliament and Miliband came across, again as inept and out of his depth. He failed to say what he would havd done, and we assume that means signing everything he'd be told to do, with Clegg at his side. That is not what the country wants, and Cameron knows this. Yes, he's conceded that they use the institutions, but they will be watched. The main thing is we are not in this new treaty, and if we had allowed them to have the new fiscal arrangements with the old treaties we would have been drawn in to the new proposals as we've already signed those.Cameron as been right again, not perfect, but did well with what he'd got in front of him, short of walking away. I'm satisfied so far, we are not having the fiscal union, and that's good enough for me. Next step if the break the rules, legal action, for me it seems we are back in the driving seat for a while, not the French and Germans alone. We rule ourselves not ruled by the EU. The option to walk away still remains.
ex-Tory Voter
January 31st, 2012 8:17pm Report this comment"And it takes plonkers like you, and fools like Bill Cash, to subvert a Conservative-led government ..." Would that it were a "Conservative-led government", Damon. If it truly were, there would be no complaint. The reason why grass-root Conservatives are leaving in droves is that there is no discernible difference between the three main parties. This is as true over the EU as anywhere else; all three parties promised a referendum and then reneged. The most Conservative manifesto belongs to UKIP.
2trueblue
January 31st, 2012 10:10pm Report this commentA rotten dish was served and we were forced to eat the starter. No big deal, at least we were not the main course.
Alexandrovich
January 31st, 2012 10:56pm Report this commentBarbara: "We rule ourselves..." Quite sure about this are you?
Nomad
January 31st, 2012 11:30pm Report this commentNo Damon, REAL Tories will be voting UKIP.
Fergus Pickering
February 1st, 2012 6:45am Report this commentReally, you lot should be ashamed of yourselves. I'll vote UKIP and I DON'T CARE. Bugger off, then. Find yourselves a putative PM nobody will vote for and then sit in the corner and glower. Pshaw!
Sir Everard Digby
February 1st, 2012 6:59am Report this commentIt is touching to find such faith...I did not realise that some people think that UKIP will be different to the other political class groupings. All they are promising to do is something the rest are not. Remember the LibDems 2010 election campaign.....constructed along the same lines.
The Tories.....well, the reason 'real' Tories favour UKIP is because Cameron promised to be different from Labour -but he is not.
I see nothing to suggest that UKIP would not follow the same pattern.
michael
February 1st, 2012 9:44am Report this commentNo doubt the PM will be accused of another ignominious U turn. - EM however is haplessly stuck going round and round the Brussels ring still awaiting instruction from Unite's dodgy sat nav.
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