Eric Pickles appeals for Tory unity over PM's Europe speech - Telegraph.co.uk

Asked whether the Prime Minister could quell unrest over Europe among Tory MPs, Mr Pickles said: "I think so. I think there is a willingness and a desire to come together.

"We recognise that it is immensely important to come together, not just for our political future but for our industrial and social future."

Earlier this month, Mr Pickles said he hoped Britain could remain a member of the EU, but suggested it should not do so "at any price".

Mr Cameron's official spokesman said the Prime Minister's schedule this week meant he could not travel to Europe to unveil the plan, as had been hoped.

Instead, he will outline how he intends to seek the "fresh consent" of the public for a new relationship between Britain and Brussels at a venue in central London on Wednesday morning, before Prime Minister's Questions in the Commons.

The speech was originally due to be delivered last autumn, before being pushed back to December and then January after a series of rethinks and unexpected events.

It was firmly scheduled for Tuesday, but that date was scrapped last week because it clashed with a ceremony celebrating a Franco-German friendship treaty. President Obama's inauguration ceremony in Washington also ruled out Monday of this week.

Mr Cameron has said that he favours the UK remaining in the EU, but on "renegotiated" terms.

However, reports over the weekend indicated that the Prime Minister would offer voters a choice at a referendum - expected in 2018 - on whether to quit the union altogether.

According to advance extracts released last week, Mr Cameron will warn that Britain could "drift towards the exit" from the EU unless there is real change in Brussels.

He identified the crisis in the eurozone, the challenge of economic competitiveness and the issue of democratic legitimacy as key issues which must be resolved in negotiations on the future shape of the EU.

As the speech will be focused on the period after the next election, Mr Cameron is expected to detail Conservative policy, and is likely to dismay leading Liberal Democrats.

On Sunday, Dr Liam Fox, the former Defence Secretary and an arch eurosceptic, said he was "broadly satisfied" with what he believed Mr Cameron would say.

The MP, who remains influential among Right-wing backbenchers, called for an "in-out" referendum to "settle the argument" over whether Britain should leave the EU.