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European Council

It is for precisely that reason that we need to push forward with enlargement. The point that the hon. Gentleman makes is right, but the Eurosceptic position, which is to say that Europe should be merely a free trade area, is certainly not the position of the Government. That is not my position and I do not believe that it is his, either. Our position is that there should be a social dimension to Europe. I believe that very strongly, but it must be a social dimension for today’s world. If we had a proper social dimension in Europe today, we would be spending the European budget on things such as research and development, technology, skills, innovation and support for small businesses. If we did that, we would of course get enormous support from people in Europe. I do not accept at all, and I know the hon. Gentleman does not really either, that a Eurosceptic position of saying, ““Let’s move Europe to a free trade area,”” is one that we endorse—we do not. I know that our position over the past few days has been characterised in certain countries as arguing for that, but that is just nonsense. As I said at the Council when someone tried to say that our position was that we just wanted a market Europe, we do not simply want a Europe that is a free market. We want a strong social dimension and I want a strong foreign policy and defence dimension to Europe. I believe in those things for Europe, but we can get a better deal for Europe, never mind Britain, in today’s world than the one that we have.