Member News
By Ned Simons - 1st November 2010
Conservative MPs must have shifted uneasily in their seats this afternoon as pro-European Labour and Lib Dem MPs praised David Cameron for his approach to EU budget negotiations.
In a statement in the Commons this afternoon the prime minister told MPs that the planned 2.9 per cent rise in the European Union's budget was a victory for Britain, as it was less that the 6 per cent initially proposed.
And he said an agreement had been reached on an important new principle that would see future budgets reflect the internal budgets of member states.
"This new principle applies to the 2012 and 2013 budgets and the crucial 2014-2020 EU spending framework," he said.
He added: "We prevented a crazy 6 per cent rise in the EU budget next year. We made sure that the budget reflects domestic spending cuts in all future years."
But many MPs, especially Conservatives, are unhappy at having to hand over any more money at all to Brussels at a time when Whitehall is being told to tighten its belt.
Former Lib Dem leader Charles Kennedy rose, "without a hint of mischief" Cameron noted, to offer the prime minister his "solid support" as "one longstanding pro-European now to another" for his efforts in the budget negotiations.
And former Labour Europe minister Denis MacShane said there was nothing the prime minister had said in his statement with which he could disagree and welcomed him to the "club of euro-pragmatism".
While Labour leader Ed Miliband said he recognised Cameron may have some trouble making sure his government's broadly eurosceptic Tory MPs and Europhile Lib Dem MPs remained friends.
"We all know you have a slightly tricky predicament on Europe. You have got your old friends and your new friends on the front bench," he said.
"I do want to say to you on Europe, very, very sincerely, we are here to help you.”
He added: "We know you have had some pretty strong views on Europe yourself in the past but we are willing to ignore your previous convictions just as long as you are as well."
And Miliband sought to rile the Tory backbenches further by telling them their leader’s approach to the budget rise had gone from “No, no, no” to “No, no, maybe, oh go on then”.
Cameron insisted that his coalition was "just one big happy family" and told Miliband, who defeated his brother to become Labour leader, "it's brotherly love on this side of the House".
He let his backbenches answer for him with a very deliberate roar when asked by Labour's Tony Lloyd whether he still had the support of Conservative MPs given his apparent failure to secure a budget freeze so many of them would have preferred.
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