8. UK transparency laws must be introduced in the EU
EU spending is opaque and secretive, allowing misuse. UK reforms, such as the requirement to publish information on all Government spending over £500 and Government contracts over £25,000, should serve as a template for EU spending.
9. Control over migration policy must be restored to the member states
Treaty changes allowing the UK to require EU jobseekers who do not find a job within six months to leave, require EU migrants to have a job offer before they come to the UK and, probably, end the right of non-EU family members to enter without restrictions are the minimum for successful renegotiation.
The UK must also push for the Treaty to be reworded so that it refers to the free movement of workers rather than people (‘workers’ should be defined as skilled workers). Alternatively, the UK could seek to reach a new settlement where it could democratically control the number of people coming into the UK.
Should Britain stay in or get out of the EU? Polling since 1977
10%20%30%40%50%60%70%80%90%October 1977…Stay In:Get Out:22-24 October 2011Stay InGet Out
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10. A form of national veto must be reintroduced
Far more effective tools are needed to ensure that the UK could block measures that it fundamentally disagrees with, and these tools must be secured in any renegotiation.
Examples of possible changes could be the securing of a genuine ‘red card’ (which would give legal weight to the parliaments’ opposition and would force the European Commission to drop proposals) or an entitlement for national parliaments to revoke EU law in certain circumstances. These would, however, require Treaty change to have legal weight and to be permanent.
Extracted from Change, or Go, published by Business for Britain. The editorial board: Jon Moynihan (Chairman); Andrew Allum of LEK Consulting; Matthew Elliott of Business for Britain; Luke Johnson Risk Capital Partners; Mark Littlewood of the Institute of Economic Affairs; John Mills of JML Ltd; Helena Morrissey of Newton; and Viscount Ridley.
Business for Britain is a campaign group seeking radical changes in Britain’s relationship with the EU. Telegraph Media Group, which owns the Daily Telegraph, helped fund the project.