UK Lords set to rule out EU Treaty referendum

Tory hopes for a referendum on the EU Reform Treaty were dealt a serious blow on Tuesday (1 April), as several Liberal Democrats (LibDems) said they would align themselves with the ruling Labour party when the ratification bill is submitted to a vote later this year.

15 LibDem peers signalled their willingness to vote with those of Prime Minister Gordon Brown’s Labour party during a debate on the Treaty in the House of Lords.

Lingering Tory hopes to push through a referendum had rested on the LibDems as Labour does not have a majority in the House of Lords as it does in the House of Commons, which already approved ratification last month (EURACTIV 06/03/08). 

As the date of the final vote in the House of Lords still has to be determined, Tories were hoping to convince LibDem peers to follow the example set by the lower chamber, where LibDem MPs collectively abstained, forcing Labour to rely on their own majority. 

The debate in the upper chamber followed well-established lines, with members of Prime Minister Gordon Brown’s Labour party largely speaking in favour of the new Treaty, saying that it provides for a stronger, more efficient and more transparent EU. Referring to the opt-outs the UK secured after much political wrangling, Baroness Ashton of Upholland, the Labour leader of the House, said that the treaty “provides the flexibility to ensure that when something is not in the UK’s interests, we will be able to choose whether to participate”. 

“The Lisbon treaty strengthens the framework for co-operation without undermining the role of member states,” she pointed out, adding that the EU should not be seen as an alternative to UK foreign policy “but as an important means of implementing it”. 

Her statement also echoed the findings of a report of the House of Lords’ constitutional committee. Presented on 28 March, it concluded that the new Treaty would have no major impact on UK sovereignty, but offered “greater clarity” over where the EU’s powers stopped. 

Referring to promises made by the former Labour government in 2005, Tory peers accused Labour of betraying its own citizens. “There is very strong feeling among peers that Labour’s manifesto commitment has been broken,” Tory peer Lord Lament stated ahead of the debate. 

The Treaty of Lisbon must be ratified by all 27 EU member states for it to come into force. Thus far, Bulgaria (EURACTIV 25/03/08), France (11/02/08), Hungary (18/12/07), Malta (30/01/08), Romania (05/02/08), Slovenia (30/01/08) and most recently Poland have ratified the new Treaty (EURACTIV 02/04/08), all by parliamentary vote. Ireland is the only country certain to hold a referendum on the Treaty, scheduled for June. 

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