David Cameron’s interview with the Telegraph today reveals that the Prime Minister would not campaign for an ‘out’ vote in a referendum on Britain’s membership of the European Union. This will confuse some Conservatives, who had hoped that the ‘fresh deal and a fresh settlement’ that the Prime Minister described in the chamber earlier this month would either lead to a successful renegotiation followed by a referendum in which the government pushed for a ‘yes’ vote, or a failed attempt at renegotiation followed by a referendum in which the government pushed for a ‘no’ vote.
But Cameron told Robert Winnett that he would never campaign for an ‘out’ vote. He adds:
‘It comes back to this, who are going to be the winning nations for the 21st century? If your vision of Britain was that we should just withdraw and become a sort of greater Switzerland, I think that would be a complete denial of our national interests.’
Paul Goodman points out on ConHome this morning that the Prime Minister has also weakened his negotiating position by showing his hand before talks have even begun.
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