European Union (Amendment) Bill

The hon. Member for Kingston and Surbiton (Mr. Davey), spokesman for the Liberal Democrats, referred in his contribution to the modern Conservative party, but I do not know quite what he meant by that. That said, we heard some interesting speeches from Conservative Members. The right hon. and learned Member for Rushcliffe (Mr. Clarke) made a typically well thought-out speech outlining his particular, very progressive views, which have not changed over the years and which put Britain in the right context within Europe. We also heard a speech from the right hon. and learned Member for Kensington and Chelsea (Sir Malcolm Rifkind), who described himself as a mild Eurosceptic. When he said that, I looked at the faces of some of his colleagues, and when he sat down having finished his speech I think they were thinking that he is not quite the mild Euro-sceptic he had claimed to be, as his views seem to be a lot nearer to those of the right hon. and learned Member for Rushcliffe. The right hon. Member for Richmond, Yorks (Mr. Hague), who spoke from the Conservative Front Bench, helped to clarify in my mind the nature of the modern Conservative party. It was clear that he could not command his party behind his position, and that there were too many influential members of the party who had taken a thoughtful and independent view about the role of Britain in the European Union. He made an excellent speech in technical terms, and it was very humorous in his usual fashion, but he expressed the views of the old Conservative party back when he led it, when he used many foreign policy wickets to bat against the EU, believing that that reflected the view of the British people. He got caught out then, and I predict that if the Conservative party continues on that track, it will get caught out yet again.