LEADERSHIP contender Andy Burnham departed dramatically from the Labour Party script yesterday as he called for a referendum on EU membership — and demanded that it be brought forward to 2016.

Mr Burnham told the Observer that “the country has voted now for a European referendum” and said that if he won the Labour leadership race he would back Prime Minister David Cameron in bringing the vote forward to 2016.

Labour went into the general election insisting that there be no vote on EU membership — a stance many blame for a surge in Ukip support among working-class voters.

The shadow health secretary indicated that he felt their ire, arguing: “If Cameron doesn’t deliver legislative change in terms of abuse of the rules of free movement by agencies and the effect on people with jobs here, it won’t be good enough.”

Despite such caveats Mr Burnham suggested that he would campaign to remain in the anti-democratic economic bloc regardless.

General union Unite leader Len McCluskey declared yesterday that if it was to challenge Ukip, the left needed to be ready for a serious debate on the free movement of labour which, alongside the free movement of capital, is one of the main pillars of the European project.

Critics say that the rules allow big business to import cheap labour from countries where wages are lower, causing a “race to the bottom” on pay and conditions.

Communist Party of Britain international secretary John Foster welcomed Mr Burnham’s “backing for the democratic right of people to vote on EU membership.”

But Mr Foster also said: “It is very disappointing that he has not indicated any criticism of an institution that is imposing austerity, cuts and privatisation across Europe and which is thereby a major driver of the rise of right-wing and racist parties.
“Democracy should go further than the right to a referendum and embrace the recovery of economic democracy in our own country.”
news@peoples-press.com