{New #1 Issue @ BE: Clarke} David Cameron has been advised by a senior Conservative to ignore the daft ambitions of eurosceptic Tory MPs who belong in Ukip. Ken Clarke spoke out this morning as the Prime Minister continues to face attacks from the outgoing European Commission president Jose Manuel Barroso over his plans to limit the number of EU migrants coming to the UK. No 10 is said to be examining options and Mr Cameron is expected to set out the plans by Christmas. But Mr Clarke advised his leader this morning: Ignore the daft ambitions of people who’ve made interests for just getting out of Europe. Let’s look after Britain in the modern world, keep us a modern economy. Speaking on the Today programme, the former chancellor said the Tory right was pushing Mr Cameron into a position that was incompatible with membership of the European Union. He claimed that pro-European Tories were getting less media coverage and that some Tory MPs were in the wrong party. We don’t get the amount of exposure in the right-wing popular press which some of my noisy members who I’ve always thought some of them should obviously be in Ukip rather than our party. His robust comments came after Mr Barroso gave an interview to todays Daily Telegraph in which he contrasts the current Tory leadership with Margaret Thatcher. It would be impossible to hear Ukip speech coming from Margaret Thatcher, completely impossible,” he said. But Tory chairman Grant Shapps has continued his spat with the outgoing European Commission president, accusing him of “outlandish claims” about Britain losing influence if it left the EU. In a City AM column this morning, Mr Shapps added: “Conservatives have always secured what Britain needs in Europe. And naysayers like Barroso have always insisted, in advance, that it would be impossible.
Posted on: Tue, 21 Oct 2014 08:15:29 +0000
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