MEDIA RELEASE
10:45am, Wed 26 January 2005

Embargo: none



EU REFERENDUM BILL WON'T
STOP THE CHEATING


The new EU Constitution Referendum Bill is designed to maximise the government's capacity to cheat in the run-up to the vote. A key component of Tony Blair's strategy will be to ensure that the 'yes' side massively outspends the 'no' campaign using taxpayers' money.

In a leaked Foreign Office paper, it has been revealed that expensive London PR agency, Geronimo, has been hired to start an 'extensive communications strategy' (Financial Times, 19/01/05). Europe minister Denis MacShane is on record as saying that the government intends devoting 'serious money' promoting the EU Constitution (The Independent, 31/05/04).

The proposed Bill, predictably, does nothing to create a level-playing field and to stop the abuse of public money that the government is already engaging in.

In response to a parliamentary question from Labour MP John Cryer asking what steps the government is taking to ensure that its communications are strictly neutral on the issue, the minister said that the Foreign Office would continue to put out materials that are 'in line with and supports the government' (Hansard, 19/01/05).

The Electoral Commission has already made public its concern that the government and the European Union will, as things stand, be able to spend an unlimited sum of taxpayers' money between now and the start of the official campaign period (28 days before polling day). The official 'yes' and 'no' campaigns will be restricted to spending only £5million each. The intention is to soften up public opinion between now and the start of the actual campaign.

The Foreign Office is already distributing across the country a glossy pamphlet entitled What the Proposed EU Constitution Says. The content of his document is highly selective and misleading.

The Democracy Movement will be launching a new campaign next month called 'Stop the Cheating!' designed to make the government's blatant abuse of public money an issue in the run-up to the next election.

Russell Walters, director of the Democracy Movement, says:

'Tony Blair clearly intends abusing his power and spending his way to victory in the referendum, using our money.

'The DM, with the voluntary contributions of the British people, will now be waging a campaign - Stop the Cheating! - to pressure the Electoral Commission into reigning in Tony Blair and making the referendum fair.

'The DM’s new campaign will bring to the public’s attention what Tony Blair is up to and to make his cheating an issue in run-up to the general election in May.'

Stop the Cheating! will make the following 3 democratic demands:

  1. That government stops publishing and distributing propaganda relating to the EU Constitution at taxpayers’ expense;

  2. That the EU be prevented from interfering in the UK referendum using public money;

  3. That overseas corporations be prevented from donating money to the ‘yes’ campaign.

The campaign will involve the sending of postcards to the Electoral Commission. Leaflets and other materials will be produced and distributed nationwide, designed to encourage voters to put pressure on their MPs to publicly support the above 3 just demands.

Ends.

For more information, contact Russell Walters or Marc Glendening on 020 8570 5861 or by e-mail.


NOTES:

  1. The Democracy Movement is the non-party grass-roots campaign against the EU Constitution - a campaign to save democracy and for a more modern, truly international future for Britain.

    With over 325,000 registered supporters and 120 local branches nationwide, it is the largest non-party organisation campaigning on the issue of Britain's relationship with the European Union and will play a leading grass-roots role in the campaign for a 'No' to the EU Constitution.

  2. Click here to visit our EU Constitution campaign mini-site.
 
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