There is something you could do to boost your ratings and it would remove a small if persistent thorn in your side, so what do you do?
Well, the Independent tells us what he did.
The new leader of the UK Independence party has said he attempted to broker a deal to disband his Eurosceptic party if David Cameron, the Conservative leader, agreed to a referendum on the ratified Lisbon treaty."La, la, la I'm not listening."
Lord Pearson said he made the approach with the consent of Ukip's then leader, Nigel Farage, after the party beat Labour into third place in the European elections in June.
In an interview with the Times, Pearson said that he took the offer to Lord Strathclyde, the Conservative leader in the House of Lords, pledging to disband the party – which wants the UK to leave the European Union – if Cameron guaranteed a referendum on the ratified treaty.
His approach was left unanswered by Tory high command, a perceived slight which Pearson said had broadened the divide between the two parties.
Farage told the Times that the offer had been to withdraw the party from the general election, rather than disband.
Now I doubt UKIP will win the election, I also doubt that they'll win any seats, though Bercow the Speaker could be in for a rude shock. But what UKIP can and will do is reduce the Tories chances in the marginal constituencies that they must win. Turning down or ignoring UKIP's offer might just be the act that prevents a Tory majority, if it does then "Call me Dave" will only have himself to blame, he could have offered us a referendum and guaranteed himself a majority, instead he nailed his EUphile colours to the mast in the hope that on the day it will turn out okay and he will be a PM who can continue to sell us out to Brussels.
Unless and until the people of the UK get a say on the ongoing integration of this country into the EU the protests and the anger will grow. Eventually something will break and instead of an amicable separation it will be violent and it will be bitter. The people of the UK don't see themselves as natural Europeans, we may love Europe, but we don't want to be part of its political systems, all the polls show this, it's only our politicians who continue to let us down. Sooner or later though we'll leave, but the longer it goes the less pleasant it will be.
You had your chance Mr Cameron and once again you let us down, but we're not surprised anymore, we've come to expect it of you.
7 annotations:
Nothing much to add, but you have my support. It would be madness for Mr Cameron to spurn such an offer.
Not one of the main stream parties will take the UK out of the EU. Until or unless the population votes in a UKIP or BNP the EU is the future. The longer this continues, the deeper the integration, and the more likely it is that the EU will prevent the UK exiting by force.
I've done a take on this today and posted it at The Times. It's a dangerous game Cameron's Europhiles are playing, ignoring the issues and going hell for leather at the line.
There are a lot of natural conservatives most unimpressed with this man and I see a hung parliament, whereas he could have romped home over Labour.
There is only one thing that scares the europhiles and that is an English Parliament. Why the ukip do not call for an EP is beyond me. The threat of the dissolution of the UK would force Cameron to withdraw from the EU.
As things stand Cameron will allow scotland and wales any powers they want as long as he can be PM of Britain.
You should have your own parliament in England. It's a nonsense that the three small Celtic nations have their own and England uses the UK one. The result is that in Scotland (and probably elsewhere) we tend to see the London parliament as the English parliament, and there is resentment that laws that affect us come from the English parliament.
I don't know what Mr Cameron could have done there. A signed treaty is a signed treaty. What Mr Pearson (who sounds quite repugnant on teh radio) really was suggesting was a referendum on staying in, or coming out of Europe.
If Scotland is independent, I would favour coming out, but if we have to stay a part of England (for that is what we really are as far as the UK is concerned), I want to remain in Europe.
"You had your chance Mr Cameron and once again you let us down, but we're not surprised anymore, we've come to expect it of you. "
Spot on!
"If Scotland is independent..."
Independent from what?
In two days time it is all over. On 1 December the whole of the UK morphs into Euro Regions 1 to 9. Later on in the game Scotland will become the North Atlantic Region. Bury any thoughts/desires/prayers for independence on Tuesday morning.
Any chance of Scottish independence died when the Lisbon Treaty was ratified by Vaclav Klaus.
Sorry to burst your bubble Tris, but in this Euro game we all lose.
CR.
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