David Cameron has been accused by former Tory cabinet ministers of "rigging" the EU referendum over plans to spend taxpayers' money keeping Britain in Europe. Owen Paterson and Dominic Grieve, who both served under Mr Cameron, warned him against “loading the dice" by spending public money campaigning for a Yes vote. The Prime Minister was told that the referendum result could be deemed "illegitimate" if the public felt it was not run fairly. The criticism came as Philip Hammond confirmed there would be no 'purdah' period limiting government spending in the final weeks before the EU referendum. It means taxpayers' money could be spent explaining to voters why they should back staying in the EU, if the government takes that position as widely expected.
The announcement came as the Foreign Secretary introduced the EU Referendum Bill for its second reading in the House of Commons. Mr. Hammond justified the lack of restraints on government involvement by saying it would be “unworkable and inappropriate” to block ministers from commenting on European issues. He promised the government would show “proper restraint” over the issue and would not be delivering leaflets to voters just before the referendum.
However the move triggered claims the government was undermining democracy and attempting to use the mechanics of Whitehall to rig the vote. Mr. Paterson, who served as environment secretary under Mr. Cameron, called the Foreign Secretary’s argument on purdah “nonsense” and urged him to backtrack. "This is an absolutely fundamental issue. If the public have a sense ... that this was rigged, the result will not be legitimate,” he warned. Mr. Grieve, the former attorney general, said it was essential the referendum was held on a “level playing field” and not “abused” by ministers.
He said the lack of purdah could “convey an impression that the Government will come in and try to load the dice, and that must be avoided”.
No comments:
Post a Comment