WHO ARE OUR TRUE FRIENDS?

 

The first item on our agenda, as we begin a new parliamentary session, is where to sit. This may seem the most abstruse of issues: "Inside the Beltway" as the Americans say. But, during the recent election campaign, it became extremely controversial. It was raised repeatedly on doorsteps and at public meetings, as well as in the press (see, for example, http://www.telegraph.co.uk/opinion/main.jhtml?xml=/opinion/2004/06/05/do0501.xml).

 

At present, Conservative MEPs are in an unhappy mésalliance with the European People's Party (EPP). The EPP prides itself on being the most federalist party in Europe, advocating, among other things, a common European army and police force, a single EU seat at the United Nations and a pan-European income tax to be levied by MEPs. Needless to say, it is also a passionate supporter of the euro and the proposed EU constitution.

 

You will often see the EPP described by British journalists as "Centre-Right", but it has always rejected this label, insisting that it is a party of the Centre. It has good cause to do so, since its programme includes commitments to a high minimum wage, powerful trade unions, maximum working hours, the Social Chapter and redistributive taxation.

 

As you will imagine, our affiliation with the EPP has been the subject of lively discussions over the years. I have never hidden my own opposition to the link. Equally, though, I will not disguise from you the fact that many of my colleagues take a different view, arguing that association with the EPP gives us more influence.

 

This is a perfectly honourable argument, but not one which I find persuasive. I believe we would maximise our influence by forming a conservative bloc of mainstream Centre-Right parties which believe in the free market and in national independence. The recent enlargement round has brought several such parties into the European Parliament, particularly from Poland, the Czech Republic and the Baltic States. As the leading force in such a grouping - an alliance of New Europe, if you like - we would hold the balance of power in the Parliament. We would have a vehicle to advance our vision of a Europe of nations. And, not least, we would be able to answer the charge, so often thrown at us at home, that we say one thing in Britain but do another in Brussels.

 

I should be very interested in your own opinion of this matter, especially if you are a member of the Conservative Party. This, after all, is a matter which touches the entire party, not simply our 28 MEPs. Perhaps you would be kind enough to tell me what you think. Please indicate your Association and branch when you reply.

 

 

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