By Rumy Vakarelska
Phillip Hammond, UK’s Foreign Secretary attempts to push EU Council ministers on anti-EU immigration has met a strong response by EC’s President Jean Claude Juncker, who said that he will not give into UK’s pressure for reforms on EU immigration.
The EU’ Council main discussion was on the looming Russian-Ukrainian crisis and the continuation of EU’s sanctions against Russia.
However, Mr Hammond went to press on EU reform regarding EU migration and cutting benefits, also claiming that Britain was ‘abused by freeloading EU migrants’, as quoted by the Daily Telegraph on January 21.
This statement came in a striking contrast with the tone of an unprecedented half-day conference at the City’s Guildhall on 20 January top when representatives of UK’s financial services and business, including Lord Green, the British top international business envoy, Chair of the advisory council at The CityUK and former Minister of State for the FCO where the main talk was about how much the City needs the EU, while highlighting the City’s internationally recognised experience in equity trading and raising capital.
In addition, a few Conservative Party MPs and MEPs, namely Mark Garnier, MP, Mark Hoban, MP, Dr Kay Swinburne, MEP, also a member of the European and Conservatives and Reformists Group (ECR) in the European Parliament, have praised UK’s membership in EU in affirming tone that the events of the organiser in the face of the conservative think-tank Open Europe, does not normally hold.
Mr Hammond’s mission at the latest EU Council shows the deep divisions in the Conservative party, which yesterday was flying the flag of a free movement of capital rather than EU immigration due to the subject of the event on how the UK’s take part in delivering growth. However, the notable speakers went further to praise EC’s new structure and operations, which will be shortly covered in www.Budlnik.com, clearly welcomed the whole package of UK’s EU membership.
Mr Hammond was also criticised by Vince Cable, the Lib Dem Business Secretary, as Hammond was separately trying to convince Mr Juncker that a UK referendum on EU membership is possible before 2017.
The unfortunate position that the British Foreign Secretary has taken will drive further the existing divisions between the two parties in the ruling Conservative-Lib Dem coalition, as Nick Clegg, UK’s Deputy PM opposes anti-EU immigration policies and actions, as well as the referendum on UK’s membership in EU.
Lastly, the Conservatives will lose precious electoral votes, as currently statistics show that one third of the UK population is expected to swing votes at this year elections.
At the above City’s meeting business leaders said that the current government hardly represents anyone that lives outside the M25 or outside Greater London. This also certainly can be true for the EU citizens living inside the M25, especially post-Paris terrorist attacks two weeks ago. France already made projections of higher emigration from France, possibly to UK among other countries, whereby French citizens represent one of the biggest immigrant EU communities of over one million in the UK, half of which live in London. As the French may say Hammonds statements made for a major ‘faux pas’ that could only be reflected in voters’ preferences this spring.
Copyright 2015@Rumyana Vakarelska
