- Tory MP Douglas Carswell secured a debate on scrapping the 1972 European Communities Act
- But government whips plotted to block it even being voted on
- Europe Minister David Lidington said Britain's EU membership was 'pragmatic'
By Matt Chorley, Mailonline Political Editor
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Tory MP Douglas Carswell claims government whips are plotting to defeat his Bill
Tory MPs today called for Britain to leave the EU, saying the diea of withdrawal is now 'mainstream thinking'.
A Commons debate was used to step up pressure on David Cameron to take a tougher line with Brussels.
Eurosceptic backbenchers demanded the government scraps the 1972's European Communities Act which in theory could pave the way for severing ties with the continent.
Tory MP Douglas Carswell pushed the idea, claiming it is time to think seriously about the 'mechanism of withdrawal' from the union.
Calling for serious discussions about how the UK could exit the EU, he said: 'Withdrawing from the European Union can no longer be dismissed as unthinkable, it's no longer a marginal view confined to mavericks. It is a legitimate point that is starting to go mainstream.
'The question of Britain's EU membership is no longer settled. It is now an open question. Many of us in this House, and indeed in the country, now openly question our EU membership.
'A referendum is coming, it will boil down to in or out. The case for out gets stronger. But we need to give people a sense of what self-government is going to look like, going to feel like.'
But government whips launched a counter-attack on his private members' bill to prevent it progressing through parliament.
Tory Edward Leigh said there was a 'democratic deficit' as there had been no public vote on membership of the European club since 1975.
He said a referendum would have to offer the choice of remaining in the EU or leaving in favour of a looser 'customs union' with the continent.
Europe Minister David Lidington said the UK's membership of the EU was based on a 'pragmatic' view of what was in the national interest.
Without Government, Mr Carswell's Bill has no chance of making it to the statute book.
British Prime Minister David Cameron met European Council President Herman Van Rompuy yesterday as a row grows over planned hikes in Brussels' budget
Mr Carswell, who let users of a political website choose the subject of his bill, claimed a 'sizeable chunk' of the Cabinet shared his views on Europe.
But the debate comes as the Government has launched a review of competencies between Westminster and Brussels and Tory ministers have spoken about the need for a referendum on the UK's future relationship with Europe.
Prime Minister David Cameron is also on a collision course with the EU over its spending plans, threatening to veto any inflation-busting increases in the long-term budget.
Downing Street has also dismissed a separate 6.8 per cent rise in EU spending for next year approved by MEPs as "completely unacceptable".
But European Council President Herman Van Rompuy yesterday threatened David Cameron with the removal of Britain's EU budget rebate if he vetoes an inflation-busting rise in the Brussels budget.
Mr Van Rompuy warned that other countries will seek to abolish the deal which Margaret Thatcher negotiated in the 1980s when he visited Downing Street yesterday.
Without the totemic cashback scheme, Britain's net contributions to the EU, now 12billion, would soar to 15billion a year.
They will keep ignoring what we want because we keep voting for the Tory/Liebour lot. Not anymore - UKIP now the only party with policies that have some sense.
- Unbelievable , Ipswich, United Kingdom, 26/10/2012 18:39
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