Non sequitur (Cameron)

[fredpuli47]

David Cameron has just told the BBC that he does not want anyone to vote for the Lisbon treaty and he has told the Czechs and the Poles what his position is. He then explains that he does not want to say what he would do after the general election, if the treaty has been ratified, because he does not want to prejudice discussions in the countries that have not voted on it yet .

What am I missing? Doesn't his telling the Poles and the Czechs what his opinion is now, and saying on the BBC that he's against the treaty, amount to making statements that might prejudice discussions in the countries that haven't voted yet?

[Mr Veritas]

I couldn't agree more fred,
And here is David Cameron trying to explain his stance on the Lisbon Treaty:~
http://blogs.sun.com/factotum/resource/789abc.jpg

[Quizmonster]

I wonder whether one could actually describe it as "dithering", Fred...one of the Tories' own favourite words, after all!

[jake-the-peg]

I think you have to look at it from Cameron's point of view

If the treaty is in place before he comes to power there is precious little he can do. He can't unilaterally withdraw Britain from an established process any more than one footballer can unilaterally change the rules of the game.

He doesn't want to withdraw Britain from the EU because he understands how economically devastating that would be for the country.

However some of his more radical party members do want that.

He is therefore desperately trying to avoid talking about it because he risks his lask conference before the election descending into a fist-fight between various factions in his own party

[Gromit]

By avoiding the big question, and dithering, Cameron risks all this blowing up in his face at a later date. He knows withdrawing is a bad idea, but he does not have the guts to come clean to the voters. So he makes disingenuous anti-Eu noises saying if the Czechs and Poles have not ratified it he will campaign against Lisbon, knowing full well that the Czechs and Poles will ratify it.

That way he will not frighten off the anti-Euro brigade, but when elected he will follow the same policy as Labour, business as usual.

I can imagine a fall out with the anti-EU voters and supporters in his own party, so by avoiding the issue now, he is storing up problems for the future. But he has no other choice has he is trying to please two masters.

[jake-the-peg]

I think that's a little unfair Grommit - he has said on a number of occasions that he doesn't want to withdraw from Europe but to change it.

Of course the irony is that changing it would be easier with the majority voting that Lisbon brings in rather than the current system where every country must be unanimous.

[Gromit]

it is all about impressions jake.

The message this week is he will campaign against the treaty. That sounds sufficiently anti EU to fool a lot of voters.

No one reads the small print "...providing the Czechs and the Poles let me".

[Gromit]

Jake, The Daily Torygraph headline this morning

"David Cameron to push for Lisbon Treaty referendum"

"David Cameron, the Conservative leader, said he would "go on pushing" for a referendum on the Lisbon Treaty."

'go on pushing" = I know I will not be able to deliver a referendum but I am making the right noises.

[jake-the-peg]

:c)

I wonder if they'd be so against it if Maggie Thatcher were to the the "President"

[youngmafbog]

Well he could of course just lie to the votors. Now let me think who did that recently ?