Speaking in the Parliament, he said that the EU "has changed almost beyond recognition" in the decades since a clear majority of the British people voted to join in the 1970s.
"Treaty after treaty, the Single European Act, Maastricht, Amsterdam, Nice and Lisbon, individually and collectively, have added hugely to the European Union's powers, often in areas that would have been unthinkable in 1975," he said in an opening speech before a legislative debate over an EU referendum.
That change of the EU "has eroded the democratic mandate for our membership to the point where it is wafer-thin and demands to be renewed," Hammond added.
The foreign secretary noted that "the fragility of the European Union's democratic legitimacy is felt particularly acutely by the British people."
"An entire generation of British voters has been denied the chance to have a say on our relationship with the European Union," he said.
Stressing that Britain's relationship with the European Union needs to change, he said: "We believe that Brussels has got too much power. And we believe that some of those powers need to be brought back to national capitals."
The EU needs to become "far less bureaucratic and far more competitive," with the European electorate more disenchanted with the EU than ever before and with anti-EU parties on the rise across the continent.
"It's time to bring Europe back to the people, ensuring decisions are made as close to them as possible, and giving national parliaments a greater role in overseeing the European Union," he urged.
British Prime Minister David Cameron has pledged to hold an "in or out" referendum on whether Britain should withdraw from the EU by 2017.
British lawmakers are working on a EU Referendum Bill as part of the legal preparations for the proposed referendum.
Xinhua - china.org.cn
10/6/15
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The EU referendum will be held as soon as possible, and definitely before the end of 2017, which is the set deadline, UK Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond has said Tuesday...
ReplyDelete"The legislation sets December 31 2017 as the latest possible date for the referendum. The Prime minister [David Cameron] has made clear that we don’t intend to wait until the end of 2017. We will hold the referendum as soon as we are ready to do so," Hammond said Tuesday at the House of Commons, where the MPs started debating legislation aimed at authorizing a referendum on the UK's EU membership.
"So the ball will be firmly in the court of our EU partners. If they embrace our agenda with enthusiasm and facilitate a rapid move forward, we may be able to get to a position where a referendum in 2016 is possible," Hammond said.
Hammond also stressed the need for a more competitive EU, one which is not bogged down by red tape.
"We believe Brussels does have too much power and we believe some of that power should be brought back to European capitals. Bluntly, it needs to become far less bureaucratic and far more competitive. It is time to bring Europe back to the people.".........http://www.aa.com.tr/en/news/534519--eu-referendum-to-be-held-at-the-earliest-uk-for-sec
UK moves closer to 'in-out' EU referendum...
ReplyDelete- Britain may not average as many referendums as plebiscite-loving Switzerland, but by UK standards the upcoming vote on the country's continued membership in the European Union has left many breathless.
No sooner had last September's Scottish independence referendum almost resulted in victory for the pro-independence Scottish National Party (SNP) and an end to three centuries of union between Scotland and England, that the British public were looking ahead to the UK's relationship with Europe.
Buoyed by his victory in last month's UK general election, Conservative Prime Minister David Cameron has quickly made clear his intention to renegotiate Britain's EU membership ahead of an in-out referendum by 2017.
At a fiery debate on Tuesday, lawmakers passed the EU Referendum Bill, which will set out the rules for the plebiscite, in a 544-53 vote......aljazeera.com