§ 14. Mr. Tim Loughton (East Worthing and Shoreham)What discussions he has had with his German counterpart about the prospects for political integration within the EU. [69435]
§ The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (Mr. Robin Cook)I maintain close contact with Joschka Fischer. Last month in Brussels, I expressed our support for the priorities that he has set for the German presidency: employment, Agenda 2000 and enlargement. The German presidency has not made any proposals for integration part of its agenda, and nor have we.
§ Mr. LoughtonWhat did the German Foreign Minister mean when he told the European Parliament last month that political union must be our lodestar from now on? More important, what did he tell the Foreign Secretary he meant by that statement?
§ Mr. CookThe German Foreign Minister set out for the European Parliament a broad visionary statement which was a characteristic expression of the German vision of Europe. It happens not to be one that we share; nor have we shared that vision over many years. Our position is closer to that expressed by President Chirac last week, when he called not for a united states of Europe but for a united Europe of states. That statement shows clearly that we have many friends in trying to fashion a Europe in which we work together when we have common interests, but preserve our national identities and ensure that there is decentralisation wherever possible.
§ Mr. Peter L. Pike (Burnley)As my right hon. Friend said, is it not a fact that the German Government have exactly the same priorities as the British Government within the European Union: jobs, securing European enlargement and making Europe work positively? That is better than an obsession with the silly things, which the Conservative party continues to pursue.
§ Mr. CookMy hon. Friend is absolutely right: we share fully the priorities of the German presidency. We think that Germany is absolutely right in putting jobs at the top of the agenda. We intend to work with Germany in making practical progress on the things that really matter to our people. That is—to coin a phrase—the British way.
§ Dr. Julian Lewis (New Forest, East)Surely the Foreign Secretary cannot pick and mix the bits that he likes and the bits that he does not like from the German Foreign Minister's comments. Is it not a fact that the German Foreign Minister—a man elected to that position on less than 7 per cent. of the popular vote achieved by his party under proportional representation—has said time and again that he envisages the European Union serving the purpose of political union? Why does the Foreign Secretary not disown that statement if he does not believe it?
§ Mr. CookWhenever the German Foreign Minister makes a specific proposal with which we disagree or 730 which we believe will not be in the British interest, we will oppose it. However, I rather doubt whether it would assist my relations with Germany if I were to suggest to the German Foreign Minister that he lacks a popular mandate.