Labour party faces EU vote decision

Senior Labour party figures are urgently discussing whether to match David Cameron's expected promise to hold a referendum in the next parliament on renegotiated British terms for EU membership.

Cameron is due to make the commitment in a landmark speech by Christmas and Labour will face pressure to say if it will do the same.

One senior Labour figure said any such commitment now "would split the party", adding it was better for Labour to argue in the short term that the chief priority for Europe was to sort out a system of governance inside the eurozone that worked, and that boosted growth in Britain's chief export markets. Demands now for a renegotiated relationship into those already fraught discussions might backfire, senior party figures said. In the short term Labour should hold fire on its position pending the 2015 manifesto.

But the former Labour Europe minister, Denis MacShane, urged the party to state now that it would hold a referendum if Labour formed a government after 2015.

He said: "Labour should offer a referendum after 2015 but make clear we will not isolate Britain from Europe in the meantime and we will campaign for Britain to stay in the EU.

"All David Cameron has done is send himself naked into every EU conference chamber between now and the next election."

Cameron's stated position is that he wants Britain to remain in the EU, but on new terms and in a more disengaged manner. A Foreign Office-led review of the balance of competencies is under way and will form the basis of British demands to the EU likely to be put around the time of the next election.

As the 17 countries of the eurozone are forced to pool more powers in response to the single currency crisis, the idea is that the Lisbon treaty will need to be renegotiated to facilitate the kind of changes being pursued.

That would supply Cameron with the opportunity to try to redefine Britain's place in the EU, agreeing to allow greater integration for those who want it in return for being able to "repatriate" areas of policy-making from Brussels.

The Cameron strategy, as seen from Brussels, is fraught with risk and uncertainty. It is not at all clear that the Lisbon treaty will be renegotiated. In an interview with the Guardian, the French president, François Hollande, bluntly opposed the notion since it could necessitate a referendum in France. Hollande, who strongly backed a Yes vote in the French referendum on a new EU constitution in 2005, was dealt a blow by France's rejection and is keen to avoid any repeat.

The Germans have been the strongest advocates of treaty change and renegotiation. A senior official said on Wednesday that Berlin felt it would be clear by December that the Lisbon treaty would need to be reopened.

However, there are moves to try to retool and reshape the eurozone while avoiding a renegotiation. Many in Brussels fear renegotiation would open a can of worms.

Angela Merkel, the German chancellor, told Cameron this week that she was not in any hurry to renegotiate the treat, according to senior EU diplomats who say her call is a tactical device aimed at securing her eurozone policy aims in a battle with the French.

They are confident Berlin would back off on its demands if its aims could be achieved by different means.

There is criticism of Cameron that if he tries to cherrypick the EU bits that suit him and ditch the rest, others will be encouraged to follow suit, inviting a chaotic and damaging free-for-all.

Hollande hinted in his interview that he would prevent this from happening. While he accepted that Britain would not join the euro and was generally "in retreat" over Europe, he said: "The British are tied by the accords they have signed up to. They can't detach themselves from them."

Source: http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2012/oct/18/labour-discuss-matching-david-cameron-eu-referendum-commitment

UK raised border queues ‘at the highest level’ with Spain, Liddington reassures Parliament

Britain this week raised the issue of disproportionate border checks and delays “at the highest level” with the Spanish Government.

This was stated in Parliament yesterday afternoon by Europe Minister David Liddington who was responding to a question in an emergency debate instigated by the all party Gibraltar group.
 

Mr Liddington made clear it had not been raised with the Spanish Ambassador because it had been raised at a higher level directly with the Spanish Government although officials later declined to say exactly who this referred to. It was raised outside of the EU foreign ministers’ meeting, it was confirmed. The fact that the queues had not been imposed yesterday was not missed by anyone.

In Parliament Mr Liddington noted that this last weekend significant delays had occurred at the border of 45 minutes to six hours as a result of the more rigorous checks by the Guardia Civil on cars leaving the Rock. He also noted the reduced delays yesterday.

“Spain has justified the more rigorous checks as being anti-tobacco smuggling operations between Gibraltar and Spain. Tobacco smuggling does occur between Gibraltar and Spain. However the Spanish authorities have not provided the Gibraltar authorities with evidence that in this case increased checks were required.” Mr Liddington noted that the delays come at a time of increased tension resulting from the fishing dispute over Spanish fishing rights in British Gibraltar Territorial Waters.

The Europe Minister reported that the view in Gibraltar is that the delays are intended to increase pressure on Gibraltar to resolve the fishing dispute. He also noted that both Chief Minister Fabian Picardo and the ASCTEG, the Spanish workers association, had criticised the delays.

PROTEST

Disruption and border queues, he said, have an effect on the wellbeing and prosperity of communities on both sides of the border especially the several thousand Spanish workers. “The (UK) government position is that these delays are unacceptable and have no place at a border between EU partners,” he said adding that the issue had been raised over the weekend at a very high level with the Spanish Government. It will also be protested formally to the local Guardia Civil, he added.

Mr Liddington said the UK would continue to monitor the situation closely and “take whatever appropriate action is necessary to support the free movement of people between Gibraltar and Spain.”

WATERS ‘ARE BRITISH’

Eleanor Laing, the MP with special MOD responsibility including Gibraltar said that the local management of the Guardia Civil in La Linea and Algeciras were doing whatever they wish “not only on the border but by making incursions at sea in British Gibraltar Territorial Waters whenever they wish to do so.” She said this was done in a way deliberately designed to make life difficult for the people of Gibraltar and their government.

Mr Liddington said that where there might be a special need for legitimate checks at the border he would expect the Spanish authorities to be open with the Gibraltar authorities about these. “That has not been the case hitherto in this instance.”

On maritime incursions Mr Liddington said that that Britain is “absolutely confident” in its sovereignty over British Territorial waters.

“That is why the Royal Navy challenges Guardia Civil and other Spanish vessels whenever they make unlawful maritime incursions,” he said adding that this is backed up with diplomatic protests to the Spanish Government about all unlawful incursions.

“Those challenges and protests make clear that such incursions are an unacceptable violation of British sovereignty,” said Mr Liddington.

‘JOINT SOVEREIGNTY PLAN WAS BETRAYAL’

Emma Reynolds MP the Labour shadow for Mr Liddington invited a retort when she raised the Gibraltar issue and echoed the sentiment that the delays at the border were unacceptable.

She asked what was being done to investigate the Spanish action and also what pressure was being exerted to get Spain to return to the trilateral forum.

Mr Liddington replied that the delays got in the way of sensible economic relations between Gibraltar and its neighbouring Campo. Unjustified border queues will, he said, be raised on each occasion at the appropriate level. He added that Gibraltar itself regularly co-operates with Spain in tackling tobacco smuggling and other forms of criminal activity and that is the sort of sensible co-operation UK wants to see.

Expressing regret that the current Spanish government refuses to take part in trilateral talks given that it has served Gibraltar, Spain and the UK well he said that UK would like to see “some kind of equivalent collaborative system established.”

Taking up Miss Reynold’s remark on support for British sovereignty over Gibraltar and respecting the rights of the people of Gibraltar Mr Liddington said he was grateful for this.

“I particularly welcome this if it does indeed mark a break with the proposals for shared sovereignty and betrayal of the people of Gibraltar which the Labour party supported when they were in government.” The remark drew great cheers.

CIVILISED

Simon Hughes, Liberal MP said Spain should do the civilised thing which is to work with Gibraltar when there are issues at the border given that we are in the EU and not the third world.

Mr Liddington responded saying this is often on the agenda in discussions between the British and Spanish side. But he also pointed out that the Spanish Prime Minister has publicly stated that he does not want the argument over Gibraltar to get in the way of a mutual bilateral relationship with the UK.

“I hope that we can very much get back to the sort of practical local level cooperation (that Mr Hughes referred to).”

Angus McNeil MP urged that the Spanish Ambassador should be called in each time there is a long queue and be kept waiting for five hours himself. Meanwhile Denis McShane former Europe Minister urged “less queue, queue and more jaw, jaw”.

Mr Liddington however rejected Mr McShane’s description of Gibraltar as a nightmare. “I don’t think Gibraltar is a nightmare. It is a thriving and now very prosperous community where there are entrepreneurial people who want good relations with Spain but also want their democratic rights respected and want to remain British.”

Iain Paisley MP said that the Prime Minster should tell Spain to get its arms off Gibraltar “it’s not going their way.”

Source: UK raised border queues ‘at the highest level’ with Spain, Liddington reassures Parliament

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U.K. Parliament Report: BBC Pay Scheme Helps On-Air Stars Avoid Taxes

LONDON - A report from a U.K. parliamentary committee says that the BBC is helping thousands of employees, including about 1,500 on-air hosts, news readers, actors and other talent, avoid tax payments, according to the Daily Telegraph.

The Public Accounts Committee suggests that the public broadcaster is “complicit” in tax avoidance as it allows people to be paid as companies rather than individuals, it said. The arrangement allows both the BBC and the employees to pay lower taxes.

The BBC now acknowledges that about 1,500 on-air contributors, actors and others are paid under such freelance-style contracts, up from its previous estimate of 300, the Telegraph said. It highlighted that this figure includes the company's "best-known television and radio stars," but the report didn't mention specific names.

Newsnight host Jeremy Paxman for one recently said that the BBC asked him to set up a company or risk losing his role.

Overall, it has emerged that the BBC has 25,000 freelance contract arrangements. It acknowledges that it does not know if these freelancers are paying their taxes properly.

Margaret Hodge, the chairman of the Public Accounts Committee, told the Telegraph: “I want the BBC to stop and call a halt to what is completely unacceptable use of tax avoidance schemes...The BBC’s revenues are from hard earned taxes from ordinary families and they have a duty to lead by example – they have a double duty to be cleaner than clean."

The BBC had told her committee that the use of freelance workers is “a pretty standard model” in media and “important to the economics of the BBC."

The paper quoted the BBC as saying about the committee report: “We note the conclusions of the PAC report and will respond to the points raised as part of our detailed review of tax arrangements.”

Source: http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/uk-parliament-report-bbc-pay-376690