Brown Joins Plot To Avoid EU Referendum

Gordon Brown is expected to hold last-minute talks with Tony Blair and Nicolas Sarkozy, the French President, tomorrow to plot how to avoid a referendum on the future of the European Union.

The key discussion, before this week’s summit of European leaders in Brussels, will centre around Britain and France’s plans to fight off efforts to revive an EU constitution. They are likely to be connected by video conference, The Times understands, after Mr Sarkozy’s diary was thrown into confusion by the unexpected surge in support for the opposition Socialists in last night’s French parliamentary election. Both countries are committed to talks because they are desperate to block moves for a referendum on an EU Treaty.

On Friday Downing Street appeared to rule out in advance the question of whether a new treaty would be put to a vote, insisting that there was an “emerging consensus” that it would be an “amending treaty”, rather than a new constitution. No 10 added that there was no precedent for holding a referendum on a treaty that only amended previous agreements. Mr Blair’s promise in 2004 for a referendum was only for a new EU constitution, a government spokesman said. Mr Brown’s allies, however, say that a referendum may still be held if it becomes clear that the summit treaty is the old EU constitution in all but name.

They endorsed comments made by Geoff Hoon, the Europe Minister, who said that the final judgment on whether it needed to be put to a referendum had to wait until the “outcome of negotiations”.