The rejection of the Constitution will bring crisis - threatens Straw
Voters will plunge the European Union into “crisis” if they reject the European Constitution in a referendum, Foreign Secretary Jack Straw said yesterday.
Giving evidence to the Commons European scrutiny committee, Mr Straw said he was confident of persuading the public that the Constitution is a positive development in the EU’s evolution which deserves to be supported. Peering before the committee ahead of today’s second reading in the Commons of the European Union Bill, which paves the way for the referendum on the Constitution which is expected to be held next spring, Mr Straw warned that there would be “profound” consequences if ultimately the Constitution were to be rejected.
“For the treaty to come into force, there needs to be 25 positive ratifications (from the EU member states).” Mr Straw said. “The European Council would meet to decide what to do. The only certain thing is that we would be in an era of quite profound uncertainty for the British people’s and British Government’s relationship with the European Union, if we were in a situation where 24 said yes and we said no ...
“We would be in a weaker position than we are now. This is a treaty which is very much in Britain’s interests.
Mr Straw told the committee it would make little difference whether a rejection came from Britain, or any other member state, such as France.
“The legal position is the same whichever country says no. The political consequences would be broadly the same. There would be a serious problem, not to say a crisis inside the European Union.”
On the British referendum, Mr Straw said: “I’m confident about winning the argument, but I have one vote from 30 million. It is for the British people to decide.”
He cautioned: “If we make a decision where we are the only ones rejecting this, then we are making a decision for isolation and we are making a decision where we are negotiating from weakness rather than strength.”
“What this treaty does is to establish the limits of the European Union and makes it clear that the powers of the Union are conferred by member states on the Union.”
Mr Straw added: “This is a treaty, it is an intergovernmental treaty – when we sign up to this we accept certain obligations.
“But it will be for Parliament to decide. If Parliament decides, and Parliament is sovereign, and rightly so, if Parliament decides it wants to leave the European Union, it can do so".
Source: scotsman.com
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