The Telegraph is running a piece calling for an EU referendum and quoting a statement by Jean-Claude Juncker, premier of Luxembourg. In it Mr Juncker appears to imply that British people should only be consulted about matters which fundamentally affect they way they are governed, if they can be relied upon to support the constitutional position pre-selected for them by their leaders.
Speaking to Belgian newspaper Le Soir Mr Juncker he said,
"I am astonished at those who are afraid of the people: one can always explain that what is in the interest of Europe is in the interests of our countries. Britain is different. Of course there will be transfers of sovereignty. But would I be intelligent to draw the attention of public opinion to this fact?"
Mr Juncker went on to outline the considerable constitutional changes which have taken already place; all without any real input from the British people when he said,"There is a single legal personality for the EU, the primacy of European law, a new architecture for foreign and security policy, there is an enormous extension in the fields of the EU's powers, there is Charter of Fundamental Rights."
The EU Constitution in printer friendly PDF format is here.
Comment
Certainly, framing the debate in such a way that the British people are kept ignorant of vital facts on significant issues has been a well trodden path taken by this current British government. Regardless of political ideology, undertaking a fundamental restructuring of the way in which nations are governed, without genuine public consultation or approval, cannot but bode ill for the future of participatory democracy.
