No Case for Voting on EU Constitution: Blair

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Thursday, May 15, 2003

No Case for Voting on EU Constitution: Blair

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British Prime Minister Tony Blair said on Wednesday that he believed there was no need to call a referendum on the new European Union (EU) constitution being drafted by the Convention on the Future of Europe in Brussels.

"I see no case for having a referendum on the new EU constitution," Blair told lawmakers in the House of Commons, the lower house of British parliament.

Questioned about reports that the constitution would drive London to give up control of defense and foreign policy to Brussels-based EU headquarters, Blair said the reports were just unfounded.

"Those issues that are said to be the reason why we should have a referendum, that for example we are going to suddenly yield up defense or foreign policy to the European Commission, they are simply false," Blair answered.

Local analysts said Blair favored an EU which was steered by its member state governments rather than EU institutions in Brussels.

The Convention on the Future of Europe, made up of more than 100 delegates from the 15 EU member states, 13 candidate countries and European institutions, was completing its draft EU constitution before a summit of EU leaders in Greece on June 20-21.

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