Major defiant over calls for end to UK’s social opt-out

Date: 23/11/1995

UK PRIME Minister John Major this week launched another fierce attack on the EU's social chapter, branding it as a “set of policies which adds to costs and jobs”.

In a clear warning to other EU governments that any attempt to abolish the UK's 'opt-out' from the social chapter at next year's Intergovernmental Conference was doomed to fail, Major added: “If others in Europe bind themselves into uncompetitive economic and social structures, Britain will not join them.”

Major's warning came in a speech in London in which he also questioned the single currency and attempted to downplay expectations for the IGC.

The prime minister's defiance will come as no surprise to other EU leaders. His government has been unwavering in its determination to veto any attempt to abolish the social policy 'opt-out' it won during the Maastricht negotiations.

But deep divisions between pro-Europeans and Eurosceptics within the government's ranks over the Maastricht single currency plan once again forced Major to duck the question of whether he personally favours economic and monetary union.

Instead, he again sought to divert attention from what the UK government would actually do when the time comes for a decision, by posing a series of questions which he said must be answered before economic and monetary union could go ahead.

Major's speech came in the wake of a report by the House of Lords' EU committee last week which said the Union must become more efficient and more credible, and insisted the IGC should not aim to increase the EU's powers. The committee rejected calls for qualified majority voting in the areas of foreign policy, justice and immigration, declared its opposition to an extension of the powers of the European Parliament, and said the IGC should not significantly alter the balance of power between the EU's institutions.

The UK Parliament will discuss the merits of the past six months of EU accomplishments in a debate next month.

But members are unlikely to confine their speeches to the dry list of events offered to them by the government in its twice-yearly 'White Paper' on EU events.

In her speech at the opening of parliament last week, Queen Elizabeth committed her government to cutting social costs “as the best means to improve the competitiveness of the European economy and create a climate for job creation”.