Czech president accepts Lisbon Treaty
Updated on 03 November 2009
The Czech Republic's president, Vaclav Klaus, has ratified the Lisbon Treaty, ending David Cameron's plans for a referendum.
The treaty can only come into effect when it is agreed upon by all 27 member states in the European Union and the Czech Republic was the last country yet to sign up.
The constitutional court in the Czech Republic had examined the treaty and declared that it did not conflict with the country's constitution, thus removing the biggest obstacle to a Czech agreement, so president Vaclav Klaus became the final leader to sign up.
Some countries had put the treaty to a national referendum but the Labour party here in Britain decided that was not necessary because the treaty did not have "constitutional implications".
The Conservatives disagreed and David Cameron promised to hold a national referendum if he succeeds Gordon Brown as prime minister.
However, the Czech Republic's agreement to the treaty renders Cameron's promise worthless because the document has now been ratified.
Cameron said: "I'm very disappointed about that but I suspect now the time is running out and we will have to say 'Right, OK, a new set of circumstances exists and we'll have to address ourselves to them' and I'll be doing that probably later this week."
Tory MEP Roger Helmer has urged Cameron to hold the referendum despite the Czech Republic's decision.
He said: "He gave a cast iron guarantee to the British people that he would have a referendum if and when he became prime minister and I believe that that is a commitment that he will need to keep to.
"A no vote in a British referendum would give an incoming Conservative government an enormously strong mandate to renegotiate it.
"I believe it should be possible to achieve a solution that would be much more acceptable to the British people than the Lisbon Treaty as it stands."
However, Conservative MP Philip Davies said Cameron should arrange another referendum if he wins power, asking the population if powers should be returned to the British government, and use the result to renegotiate Britain's relationship with the EU.
He said: "It is important to have a referendum so that David Cameron can go to Brussels and say 'This isn't something I'm demanding, this is something that the British public is demanding and they won't put up with being ignored by the EU.'
"It would strengthen his hand in order to win those powers."
