Senior Tory MP brands European Research Group a ‘corruption of Conservatism’
(left to right) ERG members Owen Paterson, Iain Duncan Smith, David Davis, Mark Francois and Steve Baker in Whitehall. Photograph: Stefan Rousseau/PA. - Credit: PA Archive/PA Images
A senior Tory MP has slammed the European Research Group (ERG) as a group which acts as the 'very opposition' of what it means to be Conservative.
Tom Tugendhat, a Tory MP and chairman of the Commons foreign affairs committee, criticised the group - which is now led by Mark Francois.
He told Peter Geoghegan in his new book 'Democracy for Sale: Dark Money and Dirty Politics' that it was a 'corruption of Conservatism'.
He explained: 'It is rampant libertarianism. It's the very opposite of what it means to be a Conservative'.
Despite not taking a stance in the 2016 EU referendum in public, the group campaigned for a 'clean break' from Brussels and appeared to pull the strings on Theresa May's leadership as she tried to negotiate a Brexit deal.
You may also want to watch:
At the time former Tory MP Anna Soubry said that Jacob Rees-Mogg was 'running our country. Theresa May is no longer in charge'.
Guto Bebb, who was a former Tory minister until he stood down in December 2019, said the group which was founded in 1993 to campaign against closer ties with Europe had 'morphed into a no-deal Brexit sect'.
Most Read
- 1 These are the 322 Tory MPs who voted against extending free school meals to children
- 2 Priti Patel set to hand private firms £28 million in government contracts to deport asylum seekers from UK
- 3 Betty Boothroyd delivers scathing assessment of Boris Johnson's government
- 4 Michael Gove's Brexit fantasy is leading us down a perilous path
- 5 Boris Johnson 'plans to resign' in six months because he can't live on £150k salary
- 6 German MEP tells Boris Johnson he 'owes' Britons a Brexit deal as she urged a return to EU trade talks
- 7 WILL SELF: Two places where everyone knows your name
- 8 Question Time: Ex-Tory minister accused of making 'sickening' comment about free schools meals row
- 9 At the upcoming US election, Donald Trump really is toast
- 10 Brexit shambles: A stress of our own making
Bebb defended joining the group in 2010 saying it was genuinely about research. He said: 'It was pretty nerdy. Which appealed to me.'
But he said it quickly became 'Singapore on steroids' by advocating a low-tax regulation-lite society, with the group packed with 'climate change deniers' who 'were quite happy to see Trump win'.
He noted that the Tories believed they could 'get the ERG to fall into line by bringing them into government,'.
But he added: 'It simply didn't work. It was a disaster.'
Become a Supporter
The New European is proud of its journalism and we hope you are proud of it too. We believe our voice is important - both in representing the pro-EU perspective and also to help rebalance the right wing extremes of much of the UK national press. If you value what we are doing, you can help us by making a contribution to the cost of our journalism.
