London’s New Europe House

I managed to squeeze 20 minutes in at the official opening of the new London offices of the European Commission and European Parliament at 32 Smith Square last night, before having to rush off to chair the Executive of London Liberal Democrats at Cowley Street just a short walk away. Jose Manuel Barroso, President of the Commission, had originally been billed to appear, but in fact was detained by business in Brussels, presumably helping save various EU members from bankruptcy, including his native Portugal. However, the British Foreign Secretary William Hague, did attend, despite being urged to stay away by Conservative bloggers such as Jonathan Isaby. Mr Hague — who brought a portrait of Winston Churchill to grace the room in the refurbished building that will be named after the war-time Prime Minister, who spoke up for European union before deciding to distance Britain from the nascent institutions that would eventually become the EU. The fact that William Hague was there is a tribute to the way that the Liberal Democrat partners in the Coalition government in London  have softened the Tories Euro-scepticism. Nonetheless, Mr Hague did have a stern message of belt-tightening for the Eurocrats and MEPs present: ‘Just as this Government is bringing excessive spending under control here in Britain  — control that has required some very difficult decisions — so we look to all EU institutions to join us in effective and rigorous control of spending.’ The irony was not lost on those present that 32 Smith Square used to be the Conservative Party headquarters and is perhaps most famous as being the backdrop for Margaret Thatcher’s 1979 victory celebrations. As one mischievous wag commented, ‘Lady Thatcher would turn in her grave, were she dead.’

The UK Election and Brussels

Yesterday lunchtime I took part in a debate in Brussels (hosted by LutherPendragon) on what the next UK government will mean for the EU and the various interest groups who lobby there. My fellow panelists were Jessica Asato, Director of the Labour magazine Progress, and Jonathan Isaby, formerly of the Daily Telegraph and now co-editor of ConservativeHome. The audience were a mixture of lobbyists, diplomats and Euro-parliamentary staffers, plus a couple of Tory MEPs (including the somewhat Euro-sceptic Roger Helmer). I stressed that the answer to the debate question depended totally on the outcome of the election (stating the obvious), but that the Liberal Democrats would be pressing for a far more constructive engagement with our European partners. It will be particularly important to try to moderate the Conservatives’ semi-detached approach to the EU, whether there is any formal arrangement between them and the LibDems or not. Personally, I suspect that David Cameron will be more pragmatic over Europe if he does indeed become Prime Minister than he and William Hague have been stating recently — presumably to try to counter the attraction of UKIP. It is interesting to remember that it was Conservative leaders who took Britain into what is now the EU, facilitated the single market and approved the Maastricht Treaty. But such has been their drift away from pro-European position in recent years that most of their pro-European MEPs left, were deselected or else joined the Liberal Democrats.

[photo: Oliver Kaye]