Labour rules out EU referendum unless UK stands to lose powers
LABOUR leader Ed Miliband will rule out a referendum on Britain’s membership of the European Union in a landmark speech this morning.
In a bid to put clear water between himself and David Cameron, Miliband will seek to position himself as the party for business by promising there will not be an in-out referendum before 2020 unless the UK stands to lose significant powers to Brussels.
“We strongly believe Britain’s future is in the EU,” Miliband wrote in the Financial Times this morning. “The next Labour government will legislate for a new lock: there would be no transfer of powers from the UK to the EU without a referendum on our continued membership of the EU.”
Business leaders tentatively welcomed the news but warned that the focus should now be on reform, not politics, and called for more clarity for businesses.
“As consensus builds in Europe that the EU must adapt in order to survive, the main debate now should not be about the politics of referendums but on the substance of reforms aimed at making the EU more competitive and growth-focused,” a spokesperson for the Institute of Directors said.