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Europe - 20 April 2004

Mr. Curry: Does the Prime Minister recall taunting a previous holder of his office with weakness over the management of his party and his Government in respect of Europe? Is he not in exactly the same position? Given the abandonment of everything that he has ever said about the constitution—always with characteristic biblical certainty—does not that description now rightly apply to him: "Weak, weak, weak"?

The Prime Minister: I have not altered my view on the constitutional treaty, its importance, its terms or our negotiating position on it. The right hon. Gentleman, again, is someone who shares my view on Europe, but unfortunately does not share the view on Europe of his Front Bench spokesmen and his party. As he knows, his party wants to take Britain in a fundamentally different direction in Europe. In the end, this is not a question of pressure in the party or anywhere else, but there is now a real desire among the public to debate this issue. As pro-Europeans, we have to accept that.

I have watched matters accumulate over a period of time, including the myths about Europe. When I read those myths out, members of the right hon. Gentleman's party say that of course they are all nonsense; but in fact, some of them are exactly what they have been saying. For example, when the shadow Chancellor stood for election, he said not merely that he was against the single currency, but that he wanted to repatriate powers from Brussels. If that is the case, that negotiation, which is not supported by anyone else in Europe, will have to be conducted. That is the nature of the argument that we now face and if we are serious about winning the argument, now is the time when we have to go out and make it to the public.

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David Curry MP | House of Commons, London SW1A 0AA | tel: 020 7219 6202