[ Torquil D. Erikson is widely credited for his early publishing
of the fundamental dangers of "Corpus Juris" for Britain. ...BG ]

Subject: BRUSSELS TO STRIP BLAIR OF TAX VETO

From: TORQUIL D. ERIKSON

To: eurofaq@onelist.com
5 December 1999

Well, it really does look as if the gloves are coming off, between Britain and the EU 14.

Today's Telegraph (the electronic edition, and I suppose the Sunday Telegraph) carries as N. 1 story this summary:

Brussels plot to strip Blair of tax veto - By Julian Coman, Europe Correspondent
"BRITAIN'S European partners are threatening to humiliate Tony Blair by sidestepping a British veto
on a new Europe-wide tax which is seen as a threat to the City of London."

A further article shows why Brussels is getting so heavy: <Euro faces further week of turmoil>>

The plan by the EU Commission is that if Blair sticks to his guns and insists on vetoing the witholding tax measure, they will simply reclassify it as a "single market measure", and for that class of measures there is no veto available.

A quote from the article:

<< A senior Commission aide told The Telegraph:
"The Commission intends to take this right to the wire and fight beyond Helsinki if needs be.
We have lawyers investigating whether the absence of a savings tax in places like Luxembourg and London
adds up to unfair competition in the single market. If it does, then changes can be made by a majority vote
and the veto doesn't count. If British objections then continue, it could go all the way to the European Court of Justice." >>

Of course the "senior Commission aide" was quite happy about the matter going to the ECJ. Britain has NO veto in the bosom of THAT body.

At this point, faced with an ECJ Court Order to accept the witholding tax, Blair will have only two choices:
1) Accept, and see his fine words to the nation and his promises to the international markets turn to dust;
2) Leave the EU.

When we entered the EEC as it then was a quarter of a century ago, we thought we were bringing a cuddly pussy-cat into our living-room. A few said "Look it's going to grow..." but they were not heeded.

It is now a snarling full-grown tiger. Co-existence with it is no longer possible. It must be turned out of our house.

Mr Blair, can you see this? Where now is your policy of "getting right into the EU so as to further Britain's national interests"?

Even more so, Mr Hague, can YOU see this now? "IN the EU but not run by the EU"... Is that possible now?

Herr Schroeder called these bluffs, or dispelled these illusions if you prefer, when he said that Britain's refusal to relinquish the national veto over the witholding tax constitutes

<<"blockade tactics that place national interest above the necessary European solidarity". >>

Blair and Hague both think that a national interest can continue to coexist with EU membership. No other member of the EU believes this to be so! In Britain alone people still think the EU is basically a glorified trading arrangement between states that retain their essential sovereignty. Well, it is NOT! It is the - by now almost adult - embryo of a new State, with all the trappings. The power to raise taxes. To have a foreign policy. To put people in prison. On these three points Prodi was crystal clear in his speech of December 1st to the EU Parliament. He called for an end to the national veto in these areas. And by hook or by crook he is going to get it!

 More likely by crook. In their mad dream-like rush to re-build the glory that was the Roman Empire, the Eurocrats are not going to be stopped by legal arguments. Legal arguments are just expendable frills. They look not at who is right, but at who holds the power to decide. And ultimate power in the EU is held by the ECJ whose "mission-statement" is not to deal justice impartially but to further the ever-closer union of Europe. All disputes in the EU institutions end up there, and the ECJ's word is final and is binding on all EU member states.

 So the only way not to be bound by it is to leave the EU. Or have our City of London - 20% of our economy - dealt a mortal body-blow.

 The people in Brussels just do not have our standards of fair play. The Telegraph quotes:

"Graham Mather, a former Conservative MEP and director of the European Policy Forum,
and not a noted Euro-sceptic, said: "This is typical Brussels dirty tricks. The same thing happened
to John Major when the Commission moved the goalposts over the Social Chapter. The 48-hour week
was introduced as a health and safety measure by a majority vote in Brussels,
precisely in order to avoid the British veto."

 They are now using this same technique over the witholding tax.

 And we have noted that they are in a position to use it to bring in Corpus Juris via article 280, majority voting because it is a "measure against fraud", the safeguard notwithstanding. They TOLD our H of L Committee earlier this year that they WILL bring it in by article 280. So if HMG says they CAN'T, it goes to the ECJ. And if the ECJ says "Right, bring it in by art 280", who do we go to then? Nobody. We will have to accept Corpus Juris, or get out.

 Since Prodi said that harmonized criminal justice was another high-priority objective on a par with taxation, they'll probably slam us with Corpus Juris via majority voting through art 280 as well as the witholding tax via majority voting as a "single market measure", so Blair will get a double whammy in Finland this weekend.

 Yes, it is all going to be decided on 10-11 December. Next Friday and Saturday. That gives us only 4 working days to stiffen Blair's resolve. Oh, and Hague's.

 What can we Eurofaqers do?

 Well, write letters to all our MPs and daily newspapers (no time for weeklies).

 And maybe the workers of the City could organize a march on Downing Street - to maximize media attention they might all wear pinstripes and bowlers, and carry brollies in military fashion like in the parade on November 11th (believe me that is a worldspeak icon for Trad Brit Garb, it gets foreigners excited and impressed) - and shout

"KEEP BRITAIN INDEPENDENT! Tell the EU to get lost!!!"

 Blair is probably ventilating deeply right now - he is the nut in the nutcracker, and he will be forced to give up one of his stated policies ("Pro-Britain" and "Pro-EU") within a week. Lets nudge him hard, so that he keeps the right one and ditches the other one.

 And one way of nudging him will be to nudge Hague so that HE nudges him hard too. Hague's European policy of "In but not run by" is shown now to be quite self-contradictory and untenable. There is one more Prime Minister's Question time left, this Wednesday. If Hague abandons his "in but not run by" policy say on Monday, he will be in a position to sock it to the PM across the despatch box, with the TV cameras whirring and the nation watching with bated breath, on Wednesday. (If Hague doesn't abandon it by Monday, someone like Portillo should give him a kick up the pants so that he does so on Tuesday). If Hague has the balls to put it to Blair, simply and understandably, "Look, either you cave in to these unreasonable demands, which are being advanced by dishonest means, or you stand up for Britain.
"But that means being prepared to walk away, to leave the EU, and saying so publicly.
"If you do that, we, Her Majesty's loyal opposition, will support you in a concerted effort to preserve our national independence. You will be able to go to Helsinki in the knowledge that you have a united Britain at your back."

 Will Hague have the statesmanship, the balls, to say something like that? Or would he feel jealous of seeing Blair taking on the mantle of the leader who saved Britain from the clutches of the EU..... and so just try to score a few cheap points off Blair on Wednesday?

 We shall see.

 One last quotation from today's excellent DT article:

Treasury officials reacted furiously to the revelations that Brussels has plotted behind Britain's back. A spokesman said yesterday: "We know nothing about this. But there is no way we will stand for this kind of outrageous double-dealing. Whatever they try, we will resist these measures all the way."

 I don't think anyone I know has ever seen a "Treasury official" in a "fury". Let alone a whole covey of them. It must be an awesome sight. I think it has to mean that we are close to the moment of truth.

Torquil

The above letter was published in the [eurofaq] Digest Number 24, on 5Dec99.
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