Who is David Cameron?

by Alan Tyers

PM-in-waiting David Cameron screwed Britain for the first time this morning: it probably will not be the last.

In September 2007, Cameron wrote in The Sun: “I will give this cast-iron guarantee: if I become PM a Conservative Government will hold a referendum on any EU treaty that emerges from these negotiations. No treaty should be ratified without consulting the British people in a referendum.”

That seems pretty clear to me.

Today, he has backtracked from that referendum promise and is attempting to sugar the pill with some tough talk about how he won’t let those nasty Eurocrats tell us what to do.

In a cunning stroke, Cameron has managed to make himself look like a weasel and a windbag.

Handed the biggest open goal any politician could dream of - putting the hopeless, unelected Gordon Brown out of his misery - Cameron has today given an unpleasant snapshot of what life will be like under his Tories.

I’m sure I’m not alone in being unsure what Cameron stands for or what his policies are. Is he a Eurosceptic? What will he do about our national debt? Will he cut taxes? What will he do about crime? How will he extricate our forces from Afghanistan?

I think it’s fair to say that most people are not clear. He needs to let the electorate know what his plans are once he comes to power, and try and convince people that he will stick to those commitments.

At the moment, the impression is of an opportunist who will say what he needs to say at any given time - and this u-turn doesn’t do anything to dispel that.

Comments

[katie]

duke nukem
lol!!
That's the sort of fresh idea i'm talking about!!

[katie]

Guys, come on. You can't be seriously suggesting that all this is David Cameron's doing. He has learnt his lesson just like the labour party and Tony Blair in particular did when trying to take on John Major's Government. If you keep quiet about your policies until the last minute and the other side has printed their manifesto the chances are they won't take all your good ideas and call them their own which this Government would and has done previously. I never got the chance to vote for this lot and frankly they have made an almighty mess which will take 20 years to clear up. Brown is still spending on what he sees as David Cameron's credit card, but is in fact betraying the whole nation in terms of sovereignty, financially and most abysmally of all the wholesale abandonment of the armed forces covenant with the people. I don't really care how much it costs to improve housing, troop numbers, training and equipment - they are the lifeblood of our nation and every drop they spill hurts us all. It is an ABSOLUTE DISGRACE that there is still no exit strategy for Afghanistan with both Brown and Obama caught in the headlights - we can't go because it would mean all that have sacrificed so far would have been for nothing and we can't stay because it is painfully slow progress in a corrupt country (like ours is now) and more ives will be destroyed and decimated and for what - so that their national crop (opium) can be produced more freely. We used to burn the crops but now we are not allowed to because it harms their economic infrastructure - ridiculous - please we need an election, we need fresh people and ideas

[Peter Angry]

Peter Wain,
ps, I'm nothing to to do with any Conservative machine. These are just my own views.

[Peter Angry]

Peter Wain, this just will not do! – you’ve said something, I agree with! And where’s the fun in that? The original trade focused EEC was something like the organization you desire, and although we’ve been tricked into it’s successor, the political EU; very few people seriously contemplate leaving, so that’s not really an issue.

Difficult as it may be for you, I’ll be surprised if you cannot acknowledge that Cameron is the only political leader or potential leader to express any realistic restraint or offer anything like a guarantee against further national subjugation to the EU.

Your notion of a separate but affiliated bloc for the former CCCP counties within the EEC, would indeed have solved many current inequalities and provide a more stable entity.

With regards to unchecked capitalism, we strike a similar chord, except that my belief is that humans, being competitive beasts will always find some way to push to extremes and that Governments, having given a tax payer funded guarantee to deposits and to maintaining a banking system, were utterly negligent in establishing any effective safeguards in protecting the taxpayer against recklessness and bad judgment within the financial system. They alone had the responsibility and the power to act for our protection.

As for competing against low wage former 3rd world counties, who said the west would always enjoy high wages, Western nations and people do not have some God ordained entitlement to prosperity. As Lawrence of Arabia said “nothing is written”!

As for the rest, I still disagree with you – phew! Thank god for that!

[Peter Wain]

Peter Angry. Yes the government has sold of a lot of gold reserves but that was done to devalue the pound which had become 40% overvalued. Regarding the Lisbon Treaty, Have you looked at the details of the Lisbon Treaty? The articles actually covers legislation that the UK already has. Only a small portion enhances the our existing constitution. The new articles are items such as not supporting the death penalty. This is no bone of contention because both the Labour and Conservative parties are dead against the death penalty anyway. Ted Heath brought us into The EU without a referendum in 1973. Harold Wilson, who was opposed to it offered the public a referendum in 1975. The champaign was fair bi-partisan and unbiased and every member of British society and the economy had their say as to whether or not they wanted to stay in the EU. Politicians of all the parties gave their view as to whether or not The UK should stay. The public chose to stay and so we have remained in the EU ever since. No successive government ever offered the referendum again.
Two many big business want the UK to remain in the UK and so alas, It is highly unlikely that any government will pull us out of the EU.
The kind of extreme capitalism we have had for the last 20 years is the root of the worlds economics problems. One may equate modern capitalism to be a capitalistic equivalent of communism. China is a communist country and because it labour cost are so, low and their are no human rights capitalist all over the world have invested their money in Commie countries like China and the former Eastern block. Free trade and Free market allows them to do this. I personally think the panacea to the problem is protectionist capitalism and not absolute free trade and free markets. If former eastern countries had remained isolated after the fall of the soviet union,and allowed to develop into a separate capitalist economy and merge with the west once living standards were the same as the west, then the worlds would not be facing the problems it is facing now. No western economy could ever compete with the low Labour costs of China the former eastern block and Brazil, India etc. Market forces need to be reformed as does capitalism in general. Many organisations in the west are effectively acting as capitalistic communist enterprises. For example paying lower skilled staff higher wages than skilled staff which is like Communism. Only by reforming capitalism globally, and having a mixed economy do we the people have a chance of maintaining our own living standards. Until then Big business (i.e) the top 10% will have the power to push economies and people around like balls in a pin ball game.

[wat tyler]

i can inform you all without dobt that this napoleonic dream has been put in place to mirror exactly what communist russia did with its sattelite states BUT under the guise of capitalism.....
THE END RESULT will be exactly the same ...... with the politbureau well under construction ........
you have all seen the futuristic films with either stallone or some other hers ?
THIS IS ABOUT TO COME AS REALITY !!

[Mike]

I think there are some very good points from all the contributors to this debate. I was one of those who initially voted on the only European Community agreement to be legally ratified by the British peoples, to join a COMMON EUROPEAN MARKET - period. All subsequent agreements and constitutions for a wider linking of Euro states and the inclusion of East European and Balkan states - many bringing a lot of baggage with them, have never been placed before the British peoples to ratify.

The reason for this is obvious, it is to govern all the peoples of Europe withoutout their full and frank knowledge and consent. It has been decided that Euro capitalism works better if you keep all the erks out of the machinery! (Much the same applies to the quietly introduced regional administrations in England. They tried allowing a couple of Regions to vote on the proposals and they turned it down! So they imposed all the others on the rest of us - calling them "voluntary bodies". As such, they slipped in under the radar of public opinion and will now be extremely difficult to dislodge.)

I object to all those commentors calling David Cameron a liar and a cheat. On what grounds? Most of us have put up with the most blatant deceit and abuse of public appointments for decades, since universal education and human sufferage was introduced. You can hardly blame any one politician for adotpting popular tatics.

We need a new political party in this country. A peoples progressive party based on the principal of government by the people FOR the people. Not for all sorts of other interests and countries - first. Not to please overpaid media journalists - who seem to decide the consensus among themselves. No, we need a new political party that we majority of working class people can unite behind and whose leaders we can more easily ALL elect and control. How many voted for Gordon Brown, or Tony Blair as our nation's leaders? A relative (in relation to size of electorate) handful of political actavists and a single parliamentary constituency - some of whom were members of the aformentioned anyway!

That is not a democratic way to elect such a seemingly powerful top person who then decides heavans knows what policies without us being able to ammend or prevent any of them. How many of you REALLY want to vote any of the other dysfunctional parties in to power - a power that you have little or no control over?? Rememer, you have the right - you employ these people - not the other way around. All you have to do is get organised and stand up for more democratic control.

[Peter Angry]

In 2005, the Labour government promised us a referendum on what became the Lisbon Treaty. And have since treated us like uncomprehending children.

We’ve been sold a dead parrot.

A “Monty Python” government – without the laughs!

[Peter Angry]

Peter Wain, yes, there has been and continues to be a Global Credit crunch and maybe that is the total problem- but wait a minute, China, India, Brazil etc don’t have eye-watering debt problems. Why? – because, in part, they are better run economies.

The last 12 years “prosperity” here under Labour have been an illusion, partly based on cheap carry trade credit from Japan. Brown sold off the national savings i.e. our gold reserves for peanuts, jacked-up taxes on everything, ran up huge off balance sheet debts on PFI etc spending wildly, employing huge numbers of public sector non-job pen pushers, tried to con us he’d eliminated “boom & bust”, ignored rising debt. Just because other western economies are in deep debt, shouldn’t mean we have to join them; are we a nation of lemmings? And you say your comprehension is being stretched!

[Peter Wain]

Peter Angry or what ever your name you live in a dream world. Socialist Ha Ha Ha. Ted Heath and MacMillan were more socialist than Nu Labour. This is a GLOBAL ECONOMIC CRISIS and the USA have had to bail out there banks too. Gordon Brown is president of America or Japan and so how you can blame him for this crisis is beyond comprehension. We have enjoyed the longest period of economic growth on record and avoided 2 recessions and only since 2007 has government borrowing risen sharply. Time for you and the Conservative propaganda machine to put away the champagne because the CIA (which is a most anti socialist organisation) has confirmed that there are 43 other countries with higher government debt than us and that includes America and Japan.

[Midland 1]

A UK referendum should still be made so that the British can make clear their feelings on the matter. The issue of European integration and the consequences for the UK needs to be properly discussed. As it is, I believe the British are now deeply resentful of how they have been betrayed. The Labour will suffer because of this at the next election.

[Peter Angry]

Peter Wain, from the “socialist misinformation department”, again paints a distorted picture. The Office of National Statistics reports today that UK’s public debt will reach more than 160% of GDP. So terrible has been Brown’s stewardship since 1997, and so huge his fiscal stimulus since, that the UK has now the biggest structural deficit of any major country

Last week’s International Monitory Fund report, singled out the UK, as being uniquely vulnerable to spiraling debt service costs, in dealing with the mess left behind by Brown’s fiscal incompetence. By 2014 the UK will spend almost 10% of national receipts, just on paying the interest on government loans – that’s without even beginning to start paying them back!

Brown established a confused fiscal & monitory oversight between the FSA/BoE/Treasury, where neither had responsibility to foresee or forestall the approaching banking disaster.

If this wasn’t bad enough, Brown has ignored any provisioning for the ballooning public section gold plated pensions “time-bomb” that is fast approaching.

Like all socialists governments before him, Brown is all spend now and screw us later. Blair knew when to jump ship!

[Peter Wain]

Greg Don't talk nonsense. Every Labour government has not ended disaster. The Labour government of 1945 - 1951 rebuilt the nations economy from ashes after WW2. The war destroyed everything and Labour rebuilt our nation and our economy from scratch, creating full employment and the NHS. The Conservatives had an easy time for most of the next 13 years they were in power which were dubbed as tory socialism. Complacency with the economy in the early early 60's made the tories unpopular which is what caused their demise in 1964. In a vane attempt to win the '64 election, the Cons tried to engineer a boom which over valued sterling. This created a problem for the Labour government which had to devalue Sterling. Devaluation was a good thing for the economy and The Labour government had solved the balance of payment crisis by 1968 and by 1970 the economy was in better shape than in 1964. The good work was soon unravelled by Ted Heath's conservative government who put the nation on a 3 day week and failed to handle the oil crisis of '73-74 which caused inflation and government borrowing to soar. Actually when labour left office in 1979 the economy was in better shape than in 1974. Inflation was lower as was government borrowing and debt. The downfall of that Labour government was the winter of discontent. Had it not occurred than Mrs T would have never Won. Soon after Thatcher came to power inflation returned with a vengence. She countered this by doubling the national debt and trebling unemployment. (Incidentally unemployment through the whole 18 years of tory rule was higher than when they came in in 1979.) After This first tory recession of the early 80's The Tories were bragging about the wonderful Lawson Boom and how they had reversed Britain's national decline and created an economy that "Dennis Healey would have given his high teeth for" This tory boom soon turned into a nasty tory bust which was made worst by the ERM disaster.
Under Labour Britain has avoided 2 recessions. It was widely expected in late 1997 that Britain would return to recession in 1998 due to overvalued sterling, a problem which labour was faced with from day one of office. This is why our government sold off gold reserves to bring down the value of sterling which was killing British industry. Many nations have done the same. The dot com crash of 2001 plunged the USA into a recession but the UK avoided this catastrophe.
Under Labour has enjoyed the longest period of economic growth for 200 years. Government borrowing and national debt have remained very low and our debt to the USA was finally paid off. The Global crisis of 2007 saw government borrowing and debt soar. But the same thing has happened in all Countries. Hate to disappoint you conservatives but government borrowing is actually lower in Britain than in major countries including the United Sates and Japan and Germany, France etc. Ours is 52% GPD, USA is 60% Germany is 63% France 64% and Japan is 172%.
The global banking crisis has been the cause of this recession and the USA just like Britain has had to bail out banks and partly nationalise them. The USA like the U.K and other nations have adopted the cars for cash scheme and injected government stimulus into their economies.
Cameron has managed to brain wash the public into believing that the global recessions is all Labour's fault. He is using Hitler's Nazi tactics of brain washing the public by repeating the message until "it is imprinted on every peasants mind". But for those who are intelligent to work things out for themselves will not listen to the Führer Cameron and think to themselves "If its all Labours fault then why is it a GLOBAL crisis.

[englishman]

I have never, and will never, vote socialist, but I am bitterly disappointed with Cameron. He is a political weathervane, always jumping on the lateset bandwagon. As I have said before, come the General Election, vote for anyone except the Tories, Labour, Lib Dems and the BNP. My vote will go to UKIP.

[greg]

Its very difficult to have a referendum on a treaty that has been accepted-its too late. Blame the Irish for that, and the rest of the Europeans as they don't seem to understand the seriousness of giving away ones sovereignty. Don't forget though that every Labour Government in recent years has ended in disater and this one is running true to form

[Tim]

If Cameron gets in I think I'll leave the country!!

[ronnie perrie]

we all know Cameron is a liar just like brown and just like the next candidate they are just puppets owned by Rothschild and his fellow bankers and last of all this media is fixed and it will not brainwash me

[dave]

Who is David Cameron? A liar and a cheat.

[Peter Angry]

You express the majority view, Katie! I believe it's largely the UK's very own Pravda, i.e. the BBC, that have partly manufactured this Cameron non controversy and that very few people are actually attempting to blame Cameron; McDonald & Tyers being numbered amoungst the few.

[Brian Lynch]

Er tu Cameron

[steve]

Katie - Cameron is nothing but an opportunist con-man. We do not have any social engineering in this country the idea that we do is laughable - the gap between the classes is wider than in Europe. As regards the smoking ban we British people should take it as far as the U.S.A and stop smoking in all public places. The human rights act as already been amended.
The reason why so many immigrants have entered the UK, the United States and other Countries is because greedy big businesses want foreigners in to do all the low paid work and keep wages down. If we had stronger trade unions and curbed the powers of the city, we would put a stop to that. Enoch Powell was the biggest hypocrite who ever lived. In the 1950's and early 60's Powell and his government encouraged all the immigrants in this country to the tune of 150000 a year to do all the low paid work, then when his plan went wrong, started to blame every one else.

[wat tyler]

it is nothing more than idle rhetoric katie ....... !!
and that is the point, politicians make all sorts of promises knowing that there are thousands of stock in trade reasons and answers that insulate them from doing what they said they could !
your post is a sound one KATIE however it is tinged with an utopian dream that can never be materialised while there are those that use politics to feather their own nests entirely !!

[katie]

Why does everyone blame David Cameron for the European situation. He has already frequently made it abundantly clear that he could not hold a referendum if all other member states ratified the treaty. This is whats happened. Now we are seeking a clarification law that allows redress to a court in our own country which can decide whether national (ie ours) interests lie with ignoring a particular European edict or not. Other Euro countries have such a law to allow some laws to be ignored if wanted. If anyone has actually travelled in Europe they will know that they frequently ignore the silly side of EU legislation, straightish bananas, smoking bans, sneeze guards etc etc; We employ thousands of little Hitlers to interpret and police such things to the detriment of the whole country. You can't move over here now without someone wagging their finger or fine book at you. It is both suffocating and is essentially what leads people to despise the organisation that inflicted it. Why can't we ignore the trivial matters like the vast majority of Europe do - why must we have armies of civil servants in non-jobs costing tax payers millions. The original concept of the EU is a sound one, we are stronger together than apart; but cultural and financial differences must be respected and catered for. This can only be instigated b the Government in charge - Brown/Blair - years of social engineering allowing unchecked mass immigration to the detriment of all here. Cameron seeks redress through a court of our own to say dismiss the human rights legislation that has been so harmful to our country in terms of law and order - what is so wrong with that?

[VOTE THEM ALL OUT AND START AFRESH]

Cameron has been making his mouth go over the past months about having a referendum that he knows would never take place because of all the backroom dealings with the rest of the corrupt governments in the countries that make up europe.

He must have been the happiest politician to hear the outcome that stopped his referendum taking place.

Dont forget that WE elect the people who misrule our country with no regard for the people who put them there.

After all the corruption that has been shown to have taken place in ALL our political parties it is now time to

VOTE THEM ALL OUT AND START AFRESH.

[They promise the earth]

ALL politicians lie through their teeth to get into power.

They promise the earth whilst seeking election then DO AS THEY LIKE once in power.

If you dont believe that then just check out all the statements that have been made by all the politicians over the years.

[wat tyler]

THIS eu superstate is nothing more than capitalism,s take on what communist russia was .......
MAKE NO MISTAKE...the evils of the russian politburo are being created and assembled before your very eyes!!
AND YOU PRO EUROPEANS THOUGHT YOU KNEW IT ALL ???

[Scratchy]

Cameron honest - pull the other one.The Tories are desperate to get into power & Cameron is expected to say anything to make sure that happens.What will happen if he does get into power is anyone's guess.The Tory b.....s will tear him to pieces.As Abama said 'he's a lightweight'

[Peter Angry]

As for Cameron’s Euro confusion, maybe the French European Minister was right, the Conservatives leadership, do have some elements of autism.

It was always obvious that Brown and the other Euro elite would ratify without consulting their populace and that Ireland would eventually vote Yes to Lisbon. Why Cameron couldn’t be clear that he couldn’t have any influence until being in Government is just plain unwise. So, the clear electoral choice will be between a criminal and an honest but uncertain Cameron. Maybe it reflects Cameron’s character that he is at least open to argument and persuasion and wishes to seek a consensus between people of strong views. All Brown is interested in, is an international photo opportunity with his peers – we can all go to hell, for all he cares!

[Peter Angry]

Invicta, Has anyone objected to prosperity in Europe? – No. Can you hear anyone objecting to security in Europe? – No. The objections to the EU, from across Europe are against a European political elite turning Europe into a quasi democratic, unrepresentative Super State, where any individual nation’s views, requirements and needs are entirely subjugated to the back-room deals between distant MEPs. Of whom, the individual nation’s government and people have absolutely no realistic control or influence. In fact, pretty much, a socialists dream! - The plebs can be treated like mushrooms by a small number of political elite. Even better, the plebs cannot even vote on it! – Thanks, Gordon Brown/Blair/Major.

[Peter Angry]

Well said Peter Wylie, - Brown’s government, made the promise of a referendum, and had the power to allow the British people to decide – but of course reneged on the promise. Is the Lisbon Treaty good or bad ? Now, we’ll never know. Brown never even had the decency to discuss it with the citizens of this Country, who would be affected by the effects. Brown has not a shred of honesty or decency.

[Scratchy]

To j loups
A vote was held in the House remember.It's a shame that an open discussion was not able to happen ,however,because of little Englander factions in the Tory party who are not representant of general public opinion or even general Tory opinion.

[Scratchy]

Well said Stephen Ford.To Peter Angry, it is people like you that make me ashaimed of being British at times.I don't agree with everything the EU does myself, am not a Blair supporter & wanted Brown to be replaced as Prime Minister.Both are part of Labours desertion of their roots.They have made things easier for a potential incoming Tory Government i.e. unfettered capitalism - we are all fealing the effects of that already.
Anyway it is the Tories fault that an EU debate is not happening in Britain because they are still split down the middle over the issue, which has made them virtually unelectable in the past.I am not sure things have changed that much.Due to the fact the Tories are incapable of having a grown up discussion over the issue, this has forced Labour to be defensive who are less split over Europe.The Tories stance on Europe is a cop out & doesn't represent the consensus of the opinion in their party.Talk about democracy huh.

[Stephen Ford]

All this fuss about the Lisbon Treaty, and why. 95% of the articles in this treaty are already incorporated into our constitution anyway. The only other articles are items which enhance the constitution not detract from it. The only outstanding issue which is binding is that there is no country will have a death penalty. We have no death penalty for over 40 years and neither Labour or Conservatives are supporters of it. The Thatcher government abolished corporal punishment in schools. Neither Labour or Conservative Governments have any intention of reinstating this. So Again what is the bog hiatus, it will not have any impact on our lives any way.

[Stephen Ford]

j.loups. It may have escaped your notice but CAMERON is a Scottish Name.

[j.loups]

Stephen Ford has forgotten that Cameron is at least an Englishman....whereas Brown & Blair are of the Scottish ilk !! I rest my case.

[Unbiassed]

I'm giving up on this column - can't stand the constant ravings from Angry, Churchill and Wylie.

[j.loups]

Mr TYERS has forgotten that Gordon Brown signed the Lisbon Treaty for Britain
already...Once the Czechs signed it last week all the EU
members have signed up for it & nothing Mr Cameron could do about that ! Obviously a Referendum can no longer be held any more....Why does TYERS believe Cameron is weaselling out ?? Brown signed the Treaty reneging on his Election promise for all us Brits to have a referendum...there is your Weasel Mr TYERS !!

[Mrs Angry of Carmarthen]

I voted against joining the E.U. but dear Ted had other ideas and in we went. O.K.
So after several happy years of reirement living in Spain (now returned) .
We are much better as a united europe than the alternative.
This iis an island, pull the troops out of Afghanistan and
make our country more secure by maybe placing our security forces on our shores, they are less likely to get killed and they may stop all the illegals from entering this land.

[the armament distributor]

when the peoples of europe discover that brussels wishes them to lose their national identity and therefore create a ONE SIZE FITS ALL mode then it will be the catalyst for insurgency!! the balkans states are not used to being told to change their national identity and even mighty russia failed to subdue them .
when this latest napoleonic dream fails then europe will be plunged back into the nightmare scenario that they had to endure under hitler and mussolini .......
and when the islamic state of turkey joins .. beware

[brian lea]

too many in goverment , all are liars, who can we trust ,? not gordon brown, not tony blair, and no way cameron , hes the worst of all, lets have brown out now and see who the public votes for, our country is now overpopulated with foreiners, does no one realise this , or are the government in it for the money only, our money think hard when you vote and gorden brown should stand down now along with david cameron

[Peter Angry]

Scratchy, Are you trying to suggest therefore, that “Some” nations do NOT what to retain their national identity? - nonsense, isn’t! You’r just using words. Also known as B*****t

Anyway, the EU problem is a loss of national determinisation and a loss national democracy. This treaty, accord, agreement, constitution, whatever the title, is a further nail in the coffin of European democracy.

[Peter Angry]

Obvious, that Scratchy is a Blair/Brown apologist and just like them will make up any story, with a tiny bit of plausibility.

However, there’s no hiding the FACT, that Brown conned us again by promising a referendum and then welshed on this agreement with the British people.

Is the Lisbon Treaty good or bad ? We’ll never know. Brown are shot scared of even discussing it with the people who never elected him! The man has absolutely no sense of decency or honesty.

[Peter Angry]

How about a remake of "The killing Fields" - with Gordon Brown as Pol Pot, with the population in agrarian slavery, maybe not - too realistic!

[old salt]

Brown,blair,cameron,or any of the so called democratic mps that run this country,are nothing but self centred fools who are only in it for what they can get out,wether this is public money(theiving),prestige(knighthoods),or an easy living on our hard earned taxes.Why the british people dont wake up and force a coallition of decent mps(vince cable for example)and not just keep swopping from one set of tossers(labour) to the other set(tories)i will never know.Perhaps it will take someone like nick griffin and his thugs to do it.

[Scratchy]

To Angry Peter:-
Labour was going to hold a referendum on the European Constitution not the Reform Treaty.Britain also has it's own form of the treaty document because it didn't comply with British law.I know that the Treaty has 90% of the things it had in the Constitution, but the 10% were the parts that required further intergration mainly which was rejected by Netherlands/ France & thus rejected altogether.The parts in the original Constitution document that reduced beurocracy within the EU were transfered in an amended form.Seems quite reasonable to me.The majority of other nations within the EU want to retain their National identities as well which the Constitutional document was seen to infringe upon.

[invicta]

Great, the European project can continue and bring prosperity and security to the whole continent.

'Brussels' does not just issue edicts and laws. Everything is decided by the council of ministers who are the elected representatives of each country. So Britain is part of the decision making process and has as much say as any other country.
The Europe project is a great project and will ensure that the EU will remain the most prosperous region in the world and, in due course, will be able to exercise its influence accordingly.

[Scratchy]

Replies to comments above:
America is 3,000 miles away - no good for trading goods.
The Tories say they want to trade with Europe but align themselves with marginalised far right groups - that's going to help our trading relationship alot isn't it.The EU has a centre-right majority at present.What exactly are the Tories worried about.My concern is that Europe is too big Business minded, not socialist minded as the Tories seem to suggest.It's pure electioneering.Right wing Tories / Cameron you are a disgrace.There is nothing in the Lisbon Treaty to worry anyone.There are over 100 Tory MP's that would agree with that as well.The purpose of the Treaty is to make the running of the EU less beurocratic that's all- anybody against that - I thought not.

[WINSTON CHURCHILL]

MAYBE IT IS TIME to become totally allied to america ???

[Brian Wylie]

Reading the original blog again, I can only presume it was written by Mandelson or some such prat. certainly a Labour supporter terrified they suffer meltdown at the election. Europe has shown it's true colours. If a vote goes wrong, don't accept it, frightem the dissenters and hold it again. Vote for who you like but get rid of Brown and his useless government who are destroying our country

[Brian Wylie]

HAng on, what is the use of having a referendum on a treaty that has been ratified by the government in power, it will mean nothing. Cameron did not manufacture this situation, Brown did. Labour just nod at anything that comes out of Brussels and LAbour MPs go along with everything. Bothe France and Germany limit Europes powers making their country's law paramount, the British have never done this, Put blame where the blame lies, not on Cameron. Why waste time and money on a referendum. The only referendum nowworth a candle is whether we stay in the EU or not. Incidentally the treaty ratification will now give some indication as to who is telling the truth about the EU

[WINSTON CHURCHILL]

the peoples choice at the next election is a stark one !!!
for change they must vote in a good percentage of b.n.p..... or ...... be forcibly subjected to national embarrassment by coutesy of brussels!!
MAKE NO MISTAKE PEOPLE....
ENGLAND IS TO BE PURPOSELY REDUCED TO ASHES !!

[Tony]

Like every other Politician, when it comes to doing something that the people want, the answer is "its a Euro thing we can't do anything about it" Either we elect peope who can govern or not, if the power to control what this country can and can't do isn't in the hand of our elected leaders, why have them in the first place. Brown, Blair or Cameron no difference, business dictates not the people. As an aside even in the most basic finacial contracts you have a cooling off period (by Law!)

[Anthony Dawson]

Who is David Cameron? Tony Blair's evil clone.

[Terry Barlow]

Who is Cameron? I know what he is but I would not be allowed to use the appropriate language.

[Peter Wain]

Super Man III should be remade with Blair as Superman and his clone Cameron, as the evil Superman

[Leslie Reynolds]

I am not a supporter of any of the three main parties but what makes dis-trust Cameron more than any of them is the fact that he is just an image - a manufactured personality. Love them or loathe them, Blair, Brown, Thatcher and Major, are at least their own personalities. Cameron is simply a clone of Blair. I'm neither for against Blair by the way. My case and point is why trust a clone.? If you liked Thatcher or Blair then you would certainly like less their clone. Similarly if you dislike Thatcher or Blair then surely you would dislike and distrust the clone even more. and t

[Peter Wain]

You could have a remake of Superman III with Blair as Superman and Cameron as the evil Superman. Ha Ha Ha.

[Stephen Ford]

I can't understand how any one who doesn't like Tony Blair could like David Cameron. He is nothing but a cheap carbon copy of Tony Blair.

[winston churchill]

SO THE LISBON TREATY HAS BEEN SIGNED ....... SO WHAT??
the FACT that it was signed WITHOUT the consent of the PEOPLE means that whoever signed it was acting in a subversive and treasonable way ..
THEREFORE as it was signed ILLEGALLY... the act has no hold over the british people and thus those that signed the treaty are able to be prosecuted by queen and country and sentenced as traitors to the crown and country!!

[Peter Angry]

Dear Alan, I think you are guilty of misrepresentation againnn!.

Cameron promised, a referendum on any emerging treaty “Up Until Ratification”; as this treaty SHOULD NOT be ratified without a democratic decision by the British people – seems fair enough to me!

However, as this treaty has now has been finally ratified by all the arrogant political elite from the European member states, including, let’s not forget, by Brown, who promised a referendum BEFORE ratification and then, true to form, reneged on his promise - no surprises there!

This treaty is now European law and cannot be re-examined

So just who would you consider the more deceitful ?

A Prime Minister who had full opportunity to, and promised a referendum but didn’t OR

A prime ministerial contender, who would provide a democratic referendum but now cannot!

[Commentator]

We know Blair and Brown are liars.
I had hoped for better from Cameron. I cannot vote for a liar.