The Problems

The first thing it’s necessary to say about Britain’s membership of the European Union (E.U.) is that it is highly controversial.

There are those who are passionately convinced that becoming membership of the E.U. was a serious mistake. These people point to the high cost of membership, and the fact that we are losing control of our ability to run our own affairs. They point to the ever-increasing regulation number of Euro-regulations - especially in business - and claim that this makes us less competitive.

Others are equally passionately convinced that our membership of the E.U. has been good for Britain. They say that we need to be part of a large single market and claim that the E.U. has kept the peace for over 60 years after two World Wars. They say that to leave the E.U. would be madness since - they argue - if we left the E.U. we would become a marginalised island, adrift off the coast of a successful Europe.

The Key Facts

Here are some key facts about our relationship with Europe that the Popular Alliance takes into account in formulating our policies:

The cost estimates differ widely, the Bruges group estimate £50 billion and Civitas £40 billion per year, which is a massive 20% discrepancy, but we do accept that the estimates run into billions of pounds in hidden costs and around £15 Billion (£41 million pounds a day) is in direct payments from the UK treasury into Europe. That figure increased by around £2 billion a year as a result of Tony Blair giving in to pressure from other E.U. leaders to give away some of Britain’s ‘rebate’, negotiated by Margaret Thatcher in the early 1980s. As more and more poorer countries join - Bulgaria and Romania joined on 1st Jan 2007 - the extent to which Britain subsidies less well-off nations increases year by year.

Loss of control

The E.U. is gradually removing our ability to govern ourselves democratically and make our own decisions about our future. Unelected and unaccountable Commissioners make decisions in the E.U. Only they can initiate laws. The European Parliament has no powers whatsoever. The Commission can overturn its recommendations. Even the government admits that over 50% of our laws are now made in Brussels. The true figure is probably well over 70%.

The E.U. want a European Constitution despite its rejection by the French and Dutch in referendums and in the face of strong opposition to it in the U.K. If adopted, it would mean still more power being transferred from Britain to the unelected Euro Commissioners.

Public opinion

Public opinion in Britain - and elsewhere in Europe - is steadily becoming more and more ‘eurosceptic’. There is now strong opposition to Britain giving up the pound and joining the euro - about 4 to 1 against. That’s because Britons have seen that the adoption of the ‘one-size-fits-all’ euro has made life more difficult for the E.U. economies. Germany has around 5 million unemployed; France around 3 million. They are not able to allow their currencies to ‘float’ up and down as economic circumstances vary, nor can they vary their bank interest rate, as this is controlled by the European Central Bank.

Public opinion is also running strongly against a European Constitution - about 3 to 1 against. Despite Tony Blair’s categorical promise in 2004 that the British people should have a referendum, we have not been allowed one yet.

On our membership of the E.U. – opinion is now evenly split. In 1975, two years after we joined the then Common Market, the British people decided by 2 to 1, in a referendum, to stay in the Common Market. It is now widely recognised that the British people were tricked into that vote by false assurances that it was ‘only a trading agreement’ and that - according to the late Sir Edward Heath: ‘there will be no loss of essential national sovereignty’. No one in Britain under the age of 49 has ever had the chance to vote on whether we should stay in the E.U.

Could we survive and prosper outside the E.U.?

Those who insist that we must stay in the E.U. play on our natural fears as to what might happen if we left the E.U. They claim we would become ‘isolated’ and ‘marginalised’ and that our economy would suffer.

The Popular Alliance believes that Britain would prosper outside the E.U. and here are some of our reasons for saying this:

i) We would immediately save the £15 billion-plus the billions in hidden costs it currently costs us to be E.U. members.

ii) We are the fourth largest economy in the world

iii) The foundation of our wealth and prosperity is our capacity for hard work, our trading skills, our inventiveness and innovation, and our free society where people have freedom of thought and belief and are able to profit from risk-taking and enterprise. Being members of the E.U. does not improve any of this; rather, it imposes unnecessary regulation and makes us less competitive

iv) Those countries in Europe, which have remained outside the E.U. have been highly successful. Independent and neutral.

Switzerland is prosperous and they exert international influence by hosting many world organisations, such as the International Red Cross. Independent Norway also plays a big part in international affairs and has a surplus of £70 billion as it has kept control of its own fishing grounds (the Conservatives recklessly gave ours away in 1972), and has not had to subsidise the poorer countries of the E.U. Even tiny Iceland, whose population is just over 300,000, has prospered. It doesn’t need to be in the E.U.

v) Perhaps most important of all, our trade would not suffer in the least if we left the E.U. It stands to reason that if we left the E.U., the other E.U. countries would still want to sell us all their goods and we would want to sell to them. It’s not necessary to be in the E.U. to trade with its member countries as we are constantly told, "that we live in a "Global" market."

The European Convention on Human Rights

The European Human Rights Convention and the 1998 Human Rights Act were meant to safeguard the human rights of individual, and prevent unfair and arbitrary treatment by the state.

However, since then - and especially since the 1998 Human Rights Act came in, we have seen the Human Rights Act abused by, for example, murderers wanting the right to vote, terrorists with criminal records in their own countries pleading the right to stay in this country, and travellers seeking the right to break our sensible planning laws.

The Human Rights brigade has brought the entire Human Rights Convention into disrepute. Being at the mercy of the often strange decisions of European Court judges creates massive uncertainty in our laws.

Our solutions

1. A referendum on our E.U. membership

Our solution to the ‘Europe question’ is very simple. We believe that the disadvantages of remaining in the E.U. far outweigh its benefits. For that reason, we want Britain to obtain an orderly ‘divorce’ from the E.U.

But we would put this issue to the British people in a referendum - in line with our general policy of trusting the British people, not politicians, to take the key decisions about our future as nation by allowing - indeed encouraging - referendums on key issues.

We believe that this simple question should be put to the British people: “Should Britain remain in the European Union?”

The last referendum in 1975 was unfair. The government of the day lied about the powers that would be given away to undemocratic E.U institutions and they poured money into getting a ‘Yes’ vote.

We are confident that once all the arguments and facts about our E.U membership are set before the British people and discussed by them, that they would vote to leave the E.U, but we would respect the referendum result, whatever it was.

2. The euro currency and the European Constitution

In line with the vast majority of the British people, the Popular Alliance does not believe that there will ever be a case for us giving up the pound, and we oppose the proposed European Constitution, which would take still more powers away from our government.

If the E.U. proposes an amended European Constitution, which they are now actively discussing, we would hold a referendum on it. The opinion polls suggest that the British people would reject any proposed European Constitution by about a 3 to 1 majority.

3. The European Parliament

The European Parliament is an expensive talking shop that has no real powers. Its M.E.P.'s claim inflated allowances.

The Popular Alliance will contest seats in the European Parliament but all our candidates, if elected, as M.E.P.’s will give these commitments in writing in advance:

1) They will spend as little time as possible in the European Parliament but will spend as much time as possible in this country campaigning for an end to our E.U. membership

2) They will of course assist constituents wherever possible with the many problems caused by our E.U. membership but will try to make Ministers in this country accountable for those problems. We have had enough of our government stating: “There’s nothing we can do about it. It’s a European decision”

3) They will undertake to claim only actual expenses, not claim everything that they can, as other M.E.P.’s do

4) They will, by written contract with the party, give a percentage of their salary and pension entitlement to the party. Even other eurosceptic parties have M.E.P.’s with their snouts in the Euro gravy trough. This will never happen to a Popular Alliance M.E.P.

The European Convention on Human Rights

We would repeal the 1998 Human Rights Act, which has not worked

We would withdraw from those parts of the European Convention on Human Rights, which are not working. For example, we do not accept that the ‘right to family life’, with which we agree, entitles travelling people to tear up and flout our planning laws. Nor do we accept that murderers have the right to cast a vote in elections. We say they have forfeited that right.

We believe very strongly in genuine human rights, like the right to freedom of belief, thought and speech, the right to jury trial, and the right not to be detained for more than a day (or 7 days in the case of serious offence) without being brought before a Court. These are the kinds of human rights that the Popular Alliance will protect

The Popular Alliance will at all times give priority to protecting the human rights of the law-abiding majority in this country.

Our key objectives in Europe:

a) To govern ourselves - once again - by our own Parliament in Westminster

b) To co-operate with our friends in Europe to maintain peace and prosperity - but not to be coerced by them

c) To replace the Treaties on E.U. with free trade agreements with other E.U. countries.

d) To secure an agreement with the E.U. for Britain similar to the ones Norway and Switzerland have. They are not full members but have ‘associated’ status. They have free trade agreements with the E.U. and only have to comply with a minimum number of E.U. regulations, paying a modest fee for their association. Neither Norway nor Switzerland belongs to the Common Agricultural Policy or the Common Fisheries Policy.

e) We would once again be free to run our own farming policy and we would recover our international entitlement to a 200-mile fishing limit.

Popular Alliance – A Fresh Light On Politics