MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency
Hammond pledges new relationship with EU, reflecting the concerns of the British people
“I will work with the Prime Minister and Chancellor to negotiate significant reform in how the European Union works” Incoming Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond praised his predecessor and promised to lay the ground for “a new relationship between Britain and the EU; one that promotes our national interest and reflects the concerns of the British people”.
Speaking on Tuesday following his confirmation as head of UK diplomacy, Foreign Secretary Hammond said he was honored and privileged to be given the opportunity to serve as Foreign Secretary.
“I pay tribute to the achievements of my predecessor, William Hague, who put this country back on the international stage. He has built new and stronger relationships around the world, whether with traditional allies such as the United States or the new emerging powers whose role will become ever more important. And he has re-established the Foreign and Commonwealth Office as one of the great powerhouses of international diplomacy.
“I want to build on his work to protect and promote the British national interest. Like him, I will put the national interest at the heart of everything that I do and everything that the Foreign Office does under my leadership. We will work to ensure that our diplomacy increases Britain’s security and prosperity. I want the Foreign Office, through our network of 260 diplomatic missions abroad, to redouble the efforts it makes to help British companies as they trade and invest abroad, creating jobs at home and delivering our long term economic plan.
“I will work with the Prime Minister and Chancellor to negotiate significant reform in how the European Union works, to lay the ground for a new relationship between Britain and the EU: one that promotes our national interest and reflects the concerns of the British people”.
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Read all commentsEU reform is not going to happen in afraid, strong words but they will be meaningless in Brussels. I am enjoying the more euro sceptic tone, but only UKIP can provide the goods and they are getting my vote next year.
Jul 16th, 2014 - 10:33 am 0Good speech. Hope he follows up on it.
Jul 16th, 2014 - 12:18 pm 0no need for UKIP. They are good fun as a sideshow, and for putting the wind up the complacent major parties, but wouldn't want them to have any real power.
Here are the new planks of the “relationship”. “Freedom of movement” ends at the continental coast. Beyond that are pistols, rifles, machine guns, cannon, missiles, torpedos. Armed helicopters, combat aircraft and warships. The only way is DOWN. Glug, glug, glug. Can't “complain” if the crabs are already picking you apart. Brussels “bureaucrats” will need to be pro-British or never return to gravy-train land. “British bomb Brussels. Strasbourg is next”. Get OUT of OUR country. There. That's not a euro-sceptic. That's an EU-hater. The EU is a 21st century revival of a combined Third/Fourth Reich and a French Empire. All noted for corruption, criminality, degeneracy, deviance, genocide, horror, larceny, mendacity, murder, perversion, xenophobia.
Jul 16th, 2014 - 12:34 pm 0Far more important than anything in “latam”. Europe is really the “cradle of civilisation”. It had slimy, discarded entrails. Italy, Spain. Germany never managed “civilisation” given that it didn't exist until the late 19th century. France was half and half. Napoleon was from Corsica. A bandit island. There really isn't anything in “Europe” worth British interest. Toss Europe off. Britain has always been so far ahead. It still is!
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