I was in Dublin last week for Europe Day, where I gave a speech about the future of Europe.
There is always a certain frisson when a European audience invites a British minister to speak. The late Baroness Thatcher said once that if you believed everything you read about our views on Europe, it would be like inviting Genghis Khan to speak about the virtues of peaceful co-existence.
And it’s appropriate that I was speaking in Ireland, current holders of the EU presidency, given that Ireland joined what was then the European Economic Community at the same time as the UK and Denmark in 1973.
The message I took with me is that our vision for a flexible, open and competitive Europe, as outlined by the Prime Minister in January, is one that would benefit all of Europe’s citizens.
There is a lot of interest in the UK’s position. Not everyone agrees with all we say – nor would we expect them too. Europe’s great strength lies in its diversity, after all. But we are finding that there is a lot of common ground.
A good debate needs to be informed as well as lively. This is why, in July last year, the Foreign Secretary launched the Balance of Competences Review – which will give the UK an evidence-based and objective analysis of our relationship with the EU and what it means for our national interest.
Between now and the end of 2014, officials will produce 32 reports looking at everything the EU does and how it affects the UK from the environment to education to EU enlargement. For the first time, we will understand exactly what membership means for us and people will be able to see and judge for themselves what works well and where there are opportunities for improvements. To do this as objectively as possible, we are seeking evidence from the widest possible range of experts and interested groups in the UK and are also keen to hear from others across Europe.
The calls for evidence for the first tranche of reports on a range of topics from the internal market to foreign policy, closed in February and will be published before the summer recess. We were pleased with the positive response. Departments received a wide range of high quality contributions from businesses, interest groups, civil society organisations, think tanks and political groupings.
In the meantime, calls for evidence on nine more topics – including asylum and immigration, trade and investment, and environment and climate change – will be published this week. These will be open until early August 2013. More information is available here.
I think it’s important to tackle any misconceptions around the review head on. It’s not about cherry-picking; it’s not a prelude to British exit from the EU. Instead it will provide a wealth of evidence and analysis to inform a constructive and serious debate in the UK.
Europe is not only a subject of great debate at home, it is also the subject of heated discussions in other European capitals. In France, Germany and Finland, to name but a few, others have been putting forward their own visions of Europe, which we welcome. It’s healthy for the EU that its members debate honestly and openly how it functions. We hope that our review will be a constructive contribution to this wider European debate about how to modernise, reform and improve the EU in the face of collective challenges.
Addressing the challenges Europe faces in the 21st century and coming up with solutions that work for all of us will call for the sharpest analysis and most rigorous thinking we can muster.
This is the next stage in that process and we welcome your input.
More information is available at www.gov.uk/review-of-the-balance-of-competences or join in the conversation on Twitter using #BOCReview.