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European Union (Amendment) Bill

In response to the noble Lord, Lord Pearson, this is the first of a number of amendments which propose that after ““excluding”” a new clause, in effect, should be inserted. I was interested in the formulation proposed by the noble Lord, Lord Pearson of Rannoch, in challenging the Conservative Party to say what it would do about the Social Chapter, which strictly has nothing to do with the treaty. The same point arises in respect of like amendments: what would happen if such an amendment were agreed to? They are all spoiling amendments in the sense that they are meant to wreck the Bill. If you purport to put new articles into the treaty at this stage, clearly that means that Britain is in a difficult position, and that is the intention of going back to say, ““We do not accept the treaty in its present form””. I ask whether a string of 20 or 30 debates that take this sort of form, although they are perfectly acceptable in terms of House of Lords procedure, do not all run up against the fundamental fallacy that such amendments could be compatible with us ratifying the treaty. It would be more straightforward if whoever is introducing this string of amendments were to say, ““Our intention here is to make sure that Britain is in an impossible position in having the European treaty ratified””.