What the EU vote means

25 October 2011

With over a quarter of the Parliamentary Conservative Party voting against a three line whip, yesterday saw the largest ever Tory rebellion on Europe. The backbench motion to hold a referendum on British renegotiation or withdrawal from the European Union won the support of 81 Conservatives.

The immediate consequences are very limited - a couple fewer Parliamentary Private Secretaries. With the support of Labour and the Liberal Democrats, Cameron won the vote easily. The long term implications are more interesting.

The vote demonstrates the increasing trend for the whole of the Conservative Party to move towards a much more distant relationship with Europe than Britain has had for decades. This is driven partly by constituency selection battles, with known Eurosceptics expecting to be in greater demand by activists. But there is also a strong degree to which for a new generation of Conservatives, elected to Parliament last year, Europe is a major concern. Many came into politics to bring powers back, and will not easily be deflected from this goal.

The Prime Minister has an unenviable task on Europe - leading this Conservative Party while maintaining a working relationship with his europhile Lib Dem partners. These strains will show again.