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‘Who counts as the “the European Union” here? Member state leaders have met within the framework of the European Council, but their agreement is in no way a document of the European Union, but a text of hybrid character, which is unspecified and not legally binding.’
Alexander Graf Lambsdorff is Vice-President of the European Parliament and an MEP with the liberal ALDE group, and in this interview with Euractiv, he becomes the latest voice to expose David Cameron’s lie that he came back from Brussels with a legally binding, irreversible deal. As I have said before, this lie must be exposed and shouted about at every opportunity.
‘At the moment, the whole thing is nothing more than a deal that has been hammered out down the local bazaar. The European Union, however, is a community of law, in which there are regulated responsibilities. If the British are going to put all their eggs in one basket, in a promise made like this, which has not yet complied with our clean process of law, then, for me, this process of law is more important and preferable.’
Can this be said any clearer? The renegotiation was a total failure, there is no reformed EU and we have not fundamentally altered out relationship.
It isn’t just my Leave Alliance allies and I saying this or the journalists we get through to (The Telegraph – City AM), it is perfectly clear to see, and widely understood across the channel, and here it is spelled out again for you by the Vice President of the EU parliament. Cameron’s deal is worthless. The EU has not actually agreed to do anything yet, and it cannot be bound by the deal, it does not have to keep a promise it never made.
As EU federalist Andrew Duff said:
‘as the personnel at the summit changes, which they do fairly frequently, the deal will become less authoritative, and may be amended, reversed or ignored.’
This short but revealing interview suggests that the deal may well meet resistance sooner rather than later. The MEP believes even the relatively modest concessions we were given went too far, and there is a real threat that the parliament will block the modest “emergency brake” on migrant benefits that was a key part of the deal:
‘I will certainly not agree to a change of the directive, as it would restrict one of our basic fundamental freedoms. I assume that many in my group, as well as my colleagues in the EPP and S&D group will feel the same.’
If this element of the deal can be blocked, then the whole settlement could crumble. We certainly shouldn’t give the promise that there will be no further political integration for the UK any credibility whatsoever.
We know now unequivocally that Cameron’s EU deal is a fraud. If this duplicitous man resigns for something, it should be the fact that he has lied to the House, and he has lied to the British public; purposefully, wilfully and unashamedly. The lies will keep rolling out until June 23rd.
Mr Lambsdorff also interestingly notes that some of his colleagues, such as Dominique Riquet. are hoping for Brexit because Britain is a problematic member that blocks more rapid integration and political unification:
‘The UK is an incredibly laborious member state. In this respect I do understand where Riquet and others that want progress in European integration are coming from and I know that the UK has sometimes blocked progress in that regard.’
This is a symptom of our uncomfortable and awkward position in the EU. Our politicians constantly play up for a domestic audience who are very sceptical and uneasy about political unification and subordination to a supreme European government. This means acting as a roadblock, causing a scene and making things difficult for other members. This has gone on for four decades, and it will continue if we vote to remain.
Let us end this now. The EU has not reformed for us. We do not have a special status. If you want real change, and an entirely new dynamic between the UK and the EU, then vote to leave.
This article was originally published by the author 12 April 2016 https://thescepticisle.com/2016/04/12/the-vice-president-of-the-european-parliament-says-camerons-deal-is-not-binding/
