'It's time to open the door and consider a referendum': Cameron to give Britain a vote on Europe as William Hague says there is a 'powerful case'

'It's time to open the door and consider a referendum': Cameron to give Britain a vote on Europe as William Hague says there is a 'powerful case'

• Prime Minister undecided if vote should be straight 'in or out' or a question of what powers to grab back
• Best time for a referendum would be when dust settles on euro crisis, No 10 sources say
• Foreign Secretary said move to a more federal Europe to solve single currency turmoil would make a 'very, very powerful' case for a referendum
  

By Simon Walters and Tom Gardner

PUBLISHED: 16:04 EST, 30 June 2012 | UPDATED: 08:52 EST, 1 July 2012

Referendum... just not yet: David Cameron has promised the UK a vote on whether to remain in Europe IF he is voted in again at the next election

David Cameron paved the way for a historic popular vote on Britain’s role in Europe as his Foreign Secretary said there was a 'powerful case' for letting the public decide.

The Prime Minister yesterday indicated he is ‘opening the door’ to a referendum.

And he was backed by William Hague, who this morning said a move by Europe towards a federal state to solve the eurozone crisis could trigger referendum.

Asked about the EU's moves towards closer union, Mr Hague told BBC1's The Andrew Marr Show: 'If it changes in that way and once we know whether we can get a better relationship with Europe then that is the time to make the case for a referendum or if there is a clear division between the parties to decide in a general election.

'That is the time, not now.'

Voters could be asked if they want the UK to stay in or out of the European Union, or to sever many of its existing ties with Brussels.

The Prime Minister is gearing up to resolve the matter once and for all â€" but not yet. He is considering turning the next Election, due in 2015, into a vote on Britain’s membership of the EU â€" or holding a referendum afterwards if he is still in No 10.

Mr Cameron believes it is too early to decide the crucial question to be put to voters: whether it be a straight ‘in or out’ choice, or a proposal to grab back some of the powers lost to Brussels bureaucrats.

And he believes it would be a mistake to hold such a vote before the dust settles over the euro crisis.

A source close to the Prime Minister said: ‘It is time to open the door on this matter and consider a referendum. It could either be a standalone referendum or it could be part of the Conservative manifesto a t the next Election.’

Explaining why Mr Cameron has not yet decided on the wording of the question to be put to the nation, the source added: ‘Now is the wrong time when Europe is in flux and the whole continent  is changing before our eyes.

‘We need to see where everything ends up before we consult the British people.’

Mr Cameron’s hand has also been forced by the financial crisis in the eurozone, which is forcing member countries to negotiate ever-closer ties.

The accelerated integration is likely to lead to full-scale treaty renegotiations in the coming years.

Breaking up is hard to do: The referendum would be the first time to question of Europe has been put to the public since 1975, when voters backed the Britain's continuing membership of the bloc

Although cynics will describe the referendum as another Government U-turn following the Budget measures such as the ‘pasty tax’ and the aborted 3p petrol duty, the pledge is the  latest evidence that Mr Cameron is increasingly turning his attention to political life after the Coalition.

If he does call an referendum, it is almost certain that arch-europhile Lib Dem leader Nick Clegg would be on opposite sides to Mr Cameron.

Foreign Secretary William Hague said there was a 'very powerful' case for a referendum if Europe moved towards a federal state

Recent polls show a majority of voters want a referendum, and a significant number are ready to turn their backs on the EU completely. However, the result would not be certain.

In the run-up to the last referendum on Europe in 1975, surveys suggested a ‘No’ vote, but in the event, the public decided against going back on Britain’s decision two years earlier to join what was then known as the Common Market.

Mr Hague reiterated Mr Cameron's desire to hold a referendum, but said he did not favour a straight 'in or out' vote in favour of a more nuanced question when it was clear what shape Europe would take following this current euro crisis.

He told BBC1's the Andrew Marr Show this morning there would be a 'very, very powerful' case for a referendum if Europe moved towards a more federal system, as expected in response to the eurozone turmoil.

But he said the Government wanted to see whether it could negotiate a better relationship between the UK and Brussels, with the return of powers, before putting the matter to the British people.

'What the Prime Minister is saying is that the t ime to decide on a referendum or a general election on our relationship with Europe is when we know how Europe is going to develop over the coming months and years to the eurozone crisis, and when we know whether we can get that better relationship.'

Mr Cameron would be setting out his position on a referendum in more detail in the autumn, Mr Hague said.

Mr Cameron’s pledge comes in the face of intense pressure from Tory backbenchers to give the public a vote.

Last week, 100 Tory MPs â€" more than half of all backbench Conservatives â€" sent a letter  to the Prime Minister which argued that there was ‘a consistent majority in this country who believe that the EU meddles too much in our everyday lives, that the regulation on our businesses is too burdensome, and that the cost of membership is far too high’.

Coalition tensions: If a referendum is called, arch-europhile Lib Dem leader Nick Clegg would be on opposite sides to Mr Cameron

They also pointed out that the EU is ‘very different’ from the Common Market that Britain originally signed up to â€" and that no one under the age of 55 has had a vote on the nation’s membership.

The picture appeared confused on Friday when Mr Cameron emerged from a marathon Brussels summit on the euro crisis  to say: ‘I completely understand why some people want an in/out referendum â€" some people just want to say, “Stop the bus, I want to get off.”

‘I completely understand that, but I don’t share that view. I don’t think it’s the right thing to do. There are other things I would like us to get out of. That’s the trouble with the in/out â€" it only gives you two options.’

Newspapers interpreted the remarks as a sign that Mr  Cameron had ruled out a vote on the UK’s membership of the EU, while Peter Bone, one of the signatories to the backbenchers’ letter, said it showed that Mr Cameron was ‘on the wrong side of the arg ument’.

Furthermore, Ministers were increasingly worried that Labour leader Ed Miliband might outflank Mr Cameron  by pledging a referendum if Labour won power.

Mr Cameron has hardened his stance in an attempt to seize back the initiative.

In addition, Mr Cameron faces a growing Election threat from the anti-EU UK Independence Party, which has overtaken the Liberal Democrats in some opinion polls.

Worryingly for the PM, many eurosceptic Tory voters are switching to UKIP and its populist leader Nigel Farage. There are also persistent rumours that some Tory MPs could defect to Mr Farage’s party.

More than 80 Tory MPs defied Whips to demand a referendum on Europe during a major Commons rebellion last year.

Growing election threat: Ross Taylor burns his Conservative membership card at demonstration by  UKIP supporters including the UKIP leader Nigel Farage, pictured right, at College Green, London

Government insiders say the most likely outcome is a 2015 Tory manifesto pledge seeking approval to renegotiate the terms of British membership of the UK if Mr Cameron wins  the Election.

This could see Brussels bureaucrats stripped of their power to decide legal, social and employment rights in this country.

Alternatively, he could promise to hold a referendum along the same lines â€" or offer a straight in/out vote â€" if he is returned to power.

By then, it is possible that  the EU landscape could have changed beyond recognition â€" and public opinion with it. Greece is already teetering on the edge of leaving the single currency bloc, and there is speculation that Spain, Italy and even France could follow it in the coming years.

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