Treaty of Lisbon (No. 5)

The right hon. Gentleman's interventions are always very amusing. We broadly welcome the Lisbon treaty and the changes in it, but there are inevitably a number of unresolved issues that raise legitimate questions, and I hope that the Foreign Secretary—or his colleague, the Minister for Europe—can address them as they respond to the debate. In seeking those answers, he should not think that Liberal Democrat Members suspect some dark conspiracy is afoot—we just ask him in the spirit of genuine inquiry. Perhaps the least clear element of the package before us is how the European external action service will work. I hope we can get some clarity on that, as I believe that it has the potential for delivering tangible benefits for UK citizens by increasing the availability of consular assistance while reducing costs to the taxpayer. What chance will this House have to scrutinise proposals for taking forward the European external action service? How will it be monitored in the future? For example, will the European Parliament, or this Parliament, have a role in the overview of its budget? What specific steps are Her Majesty's Government taking to ensure that our own diplomatic service—and the rest of Whitehall, from the Department for International Development to the Ministry of Defence, and so on—can engage fully with the newly structured European external action service, so that UK civil servants play their usual starring roles? In terms of policy development in the UK now, how will the UK national security strategy be assisted by the new apparatus? Will the European security strategy, which received such a broad welcome, feature in whatever new domestic ideas are under consideration? Finally, on defence aspects, do Her Majesty's Government have any plans to launch any particular initiatives under the permanent structured co-operation arrangements when the Lisbon treaty comes into force? I partly single out those arrangements because I have been astonished by how hostile the Conservatives seem to be towards them. Their party argues for a multi-speed Europe; it invented the idea of opting out in Europe. Its defence spokesman has had the brass neck to attack the proposals for permanent structured co-operation, saying that it"““will allow countries to 'opt-out' of any further defence integration and will create an 'inner-core' of Member-States interested in furthering military integration.””" I thought that that was the Conservatives' approach to the European Union. It is simply breath-taking. Then we come to the inconsistency of the position adopted by the shadow Foreign Secretary. I have been fascinated to see how often the right hon. Gentleman demands or supports action by the EU on one day, but on the next opposes anything and everything that increases the EU's ability to act—he is always willing the ends, and never willing the means. So, on one day, the right hon. Gentleman says, on Russia and the Litvinenko affair:"““We welcome the news that the Government have received strong support for their stance from European Union partners””." Then he says, in opposition to the proposed EU high representative in the Lisbon treaty:"““Our own voice in the world will be less important””." On another day, he says, on Darfur, that Britain"““should also seek to do more through stronger EU action””" but then on another occasion says that an EU diplomatic service is ““unacceptable””. On Iraq, on one day he will say,"““I am referring to the European Union, alongside the United States, taking measures that go beyond the measures agreed at the UN Security Council. It is time for EU nations to do more.””" Yet back in his leadership days, he complained that the then Prime Minister had signed up at Nice"““to an independent and autonomous European identity, with only ad hoc arrangements linking it to NATO…Is it not the case that duplicate and conflicting structures are being set up?””" I am afraid that the right hon. Gentleman is wriggling, writhing and, above all, wrong on those issues. Perhaps it has something to do with the right hon. Gentleman having three former Conservative Foreign Secretaries sitting with him in Parliament, with 14 years of office between them, who support the Lisbon treaty's foreign and defence policy proposals, and having to reconcile their views with those of his Back Benchers and, often, his Front-Bench spokespeople.