1123 European Community (Right of Residence) 8 FEBRUARY 1990
dele. He is right to press the point and I understand why hees. He spent some time going into the background about which I wish to say a few words.
We were advised only a few days before the meeting on 21 December to which the hon. Gentleman referred that the presidency appeared to be determined to bring the matter to a conclusion before the end of its presidency. The base for two of the directives—I refer again to the points raised by my hon. Friend the Member for Stroud—was a qualified majority. It was extremely likely that not only the substance of the directives but a legal base that we did not think right or justified could have been imposed on us.
The hon. Member for Newham, South is frank and honest. He said that he understood that if he had been in my right hon. and learned Friend's position he might have made the same decision. We came to the conclusion that because the directives were decided by qualified majority voting, we had to use our best endeavours to ensure that the legal base was changed. We judged that the best way was to agree to the substance and the changes made in the few weeks beforehand but state that we were not satisfied with the legal base.
I disagreed strongly with the hon. Gentleman when he suggested that the legal base was negotiable. It was not negotiable by us. We have always been prefectly clear that there is only one proper base-article 235. We have stuck to that. The whole purpose of agreeing to the substance of the directives was to give us more leverage to ensure that we secure the proper base. It now looks as if we may be successful. We have had this debate before a final agreement has been made. I am happy on both those points. I hope that the hon. Gentleman takes some satisfaction from that.
Mr. Spearing: I am not sure that I can. It is for the members of the Committee to read the report of the debate. I understand from the Minister-perhaps we have not given adequate weight to this-that the changes in the proposals were conterminous with speeding up the timetable. I concede that the Minister was placed in a difficult position with the presidency, but apparently that is how it works. We regret that there was no opportunity for a debate. There should have been one before Christmas and perhaps one fairly soon afterwards.
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Mr. Lloyd: We regret that there was no opportunity for a debate. We should have regretted it even more if we had been lumbered with the directives on the wrong legal base. I am sure that the hon. Gentleman and his Committee agree with that.
Mr. Ian Taylor (Esher): The main principles of the measures are welcome and will be widely welcomed by the people affected by them. Although the treaty base is regularly discussed by the British Government and the Commission and will ultimately be referred to the European Court of Justice, the thrust of the measures is welcome. Will my hon. Friend confirm that they do not affect the British interest because under the treaty of Rome, Britain still has powers to protect the national interest from drugs and other dangers?
Mr. Peter Lloyd: That is absolutely right. We retain those rights both at our frontier and under the fairly narrow but real public policy limitation to remove EC nationals whom it is against the public interest to have here.
I emphasise that under the treaty of Rome EC nationals already have freedom of movement and residence to take employment or become self-employed in any other member country. All that the directive does is to extend the rights that are implicit in the treaty in defined terms to the other groups that I mentioned. In the process we wish to make sure that people do not become an expense to our Exchequer or those of other member countries. I commend the proposals to the House.
Question put and agreed to. Resolved,
That this House takes note of European Community Document No. 7706/89 and the Supplementary Explanatory Memorandum submitted by the Home Office on 8th January 1990 relating to rights of residence; and supports the objective of facilitating the free movement of European Community nationals.
As an Amendment to the Prime Minister's proposed Motion (Right of Residence):
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