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European Union

Cabinet Rift Exposes Tory Euro-Campaign Tensions

Strategic Insights

— 1 min read

Just 72 hours before the European Union elections on Thursday, Cabinet ministers John Gummer and Kenneth Clarke distanced themselves from Prime Minister John Major's vision of a "multi-speed" Europe, highlighting tensions within the Conservative Party over Britain's relationship with Brussels. This development came as a Gallup poll in The Daily Telegraph showed the Conservatives trailing behind Labour in Euro-election forecasts, with Labour polling 53.5% and the Conservatives on 23%.

Key Takeaways:

  • Prime Minister John Major's speech last week advocating a "multi-track, multi-speed, multi-layered" Europe was interpreted by Conservative Euro-sceptics as endorsement of their vision of an EU in which Britain would pull back from a drive for closer union led by a core of member states.
  • Environment Secretary John Gummer clarified that Britain would not be at a slower speed than the rest of Europe, contradicting Major's previous statement that the country need not keep up with the continental pacemakers.
  • Chancellor Kenneth Clarke said Britain should set the running and exercise its full weight in the EU, further highlighting the rift between the Prime Minister and his Cabinet ministers.
  • Tony Blair, the Labour Party leadership favourite, seized on the apparent rift, saying that the Prime Minister's policy was unclear and that he was pleasing different factions in the Conservative Party.
  • Tory Cabinet tensions over Britain's relationship with Brussels were reflected in a meeting of EU finance ministers in Luxembourg, where Clarke pushed for Britain to take a more active role in the EU.
  • Bill Cash, a leading Tory Maastricht rebel, warned that any attempt to row back from the Government's position on the EU would meet with determined opposition.
  • Dr. Jack Cunningham, the Labour Party's shadow Foreign Secretary, accused Tory campaign chiefs of trying to silence Euro-sceptic ministers in the pursuit of unity.

Statistics:

  • A Gallup poll in The Times shows the Conservatives trailing behind Labour in Euro-election forecasts, with Labour on 53.5% and the Conservatives on 23%.
  • A separate Labour Party poll shows the party with a 13-point lead over the Conservatives, less than the lead suggested in polls last week.

Sources:

  • The Times, Thursday, 1994
  • The Daily Telegraph, Thursday, 1994
  • Tory Euro-sceptics' statement, Thursday, 1994
  • John Gummer's Westminster European elections press conference, Thursday, 1994

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