UK's EU Referendum - Cameron’s Position As PM Untenable

By Ismail Amsyar Mohd Said KUALA LUMPUR, June 27 (Bernama) -- Back in 2013, British Prime Minister David Cameron announced in his speech in front of the European partners that he would hold an in-out of EU referendum. In his speech, he declared: “It is time for the British people to have their say. It is time for us to settle this question about Britain and Europe.” The pledge did not stop there when he vowed to hold a referendum on Europe if he won the 2015 election during an interview with BBC’s Andrew Marr Show in 2014. “I will not become prime minister unless I can guarantee that we can hold that referendum,” he said during the show. Now that the referendum was held and the results were against his expectations, Cameron took a stand that one could argue as honourable or responsible. He stepped down. Professor of European Politics in the Department of Politics at the University of Sheffield, Prof Simon Bulmer said Cameron’s position was indefensible as he called the referendum in the first place. “He called it because of divisions in the previous (coalition with Liberal Democrat Party) government, largely in his own party as well as because of the rise of the UK Independent Party (UKIP). “However, he expected to win the vote. He probably felt it would be hypocritical, having negotiated special terms with the EU partners in February, to lead the country in negotiating an exit that he opposed. “I think Cameron took the honourable decision to step down,” he told Bernama. Arguing similarly, Associate Professor of Journalism Studies in the School of Media and Communication at the University of Leeds, Dr Jairo Lugo-Ocando said Cameron’s resignation showed that he was assuming responsibility for his mistakes. “This despite that 28 members of parliament who voted to leave EU, asked him to stay as prime minister. “I think Cameron is paying the ultimate price for calling the referendum in the worst moment possible. But that is democracy and he is harvesting the seeds that he himself planted,” he said. Meanwhile, asked about the potential candidate to replace Cameron, Prof Bulmer opined that the Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, who also led the Leave campaign, would be a strong contender. “He will be a strong contender unless a compromise candidate is found, such as the Home Secretary, Teresa May,” he said. Bulmer also suggested that another Conservative MP, Michael Gove, could also stand and command support. “… Although it may be that Johnson and Gove come to some agreement that there will only be one candidate from the Conservative pro-Leave cabinet members,” he added. Cameron announced his resignation as prime minister following the shocking win for the Leave campaign on the EU referendum with 52 per cent of votes against 48 per cent for the Remain campaign. The EU referendum that saw a turnout of 71.8 per cent, was held on Friday UK-wide to decide whether Britain should leave or remain in the 28-member state bloc. -- BERNAMA