The Dutch government have come out against a referendum. However, the opposition parties are pressing for a referendum and the position of the PvdA (the Dutch Labour party) remains unclear.
The biggest daily in The Netherlands, De Telegraaf, reported that the liberal VVD party, which opposes a referendum, might shift position after an article by former European Commissioner Frits Bolkestein, in which he called for a referendum. Bolkestein, a leading member of the VVD party, said the government must "stop treating the electorate like little children who are unable to weigh the pros and cons for themselves". He argued, "If the government does not, the people will certainly think that what the political ladies and gentlemen did not succeed in getting through the front door will be pushed in by the back door."
In De Volkskrant, a left leaning daily, an unnamed member of the government warned that if a referendum is adopted by the Parliament, the Government could still refuse to sign it. But that would be an unprecedented constitutional move.
The Dutch government based her decision of No-Referendum on a legal advice of the Dutch State Council that "many of the differences between the proposed Reform Treaty and the Treaty Establishing a Constitution for Europe are such that they, looking at it strictly judicially, come down to changes in emphasis, changes in form and removal of symbols - but the other way around, this was also the case for the Treaty Establishing a Constitution for Europe in respect to earlier treaties."
Leading UK dailies want a referendum
The movement ‘I want a referendum’ had full page adverts in the Sun and Daily Telegraph, calling on people to sign up to the campaign. The ads show Gordon Brown with his fingers in his ears under the headline, "Time to start listening Gordon".
The Sun launched a campaign for a referendum. Under the headline "Never have so few decided so much for so many" the front page of the paper showed Gordon Brown as Churchill, sticking two fingers up at the voters. The paper runs a long feature on the Constitutional Treaty on pages one to seven. It also carries a new poll suggesting that while Labour are currently on 42% with the Tories on 34%, if Brown refuses a referendum this lead will fall to just one point, with 39% saying they would vote Labour and 38% Conservative. It suggests that while 81% want a referendum, the result of a vote would be close, with 56% saying they would vote no and 44% yes.
The Sunday Times also calls for a referendum. It states that "There is a wider challenge for Mr. Brown. Despite the years of covert tax hikes when he was at the Treasury, voters appear to trust him. They also think it would be a breach of trust if the government does not give the public the right to vote on the European Union reform treaty, the constitution in all but name.”
