West Midlands MPs divided on vote over EU referendum

A vote has been scheduled for Friday – the day most MPs do constituency work. But the Tories have been told to stay in Westminster and support backbencher James Wharton's bill.

Labour MPs, even those who want a referendum such as Dudley's Ian Austin and Walsall's David Winnick, have accused the Tories of staging the vote for 'propaganda' while others believe they are trying to reunite their party in the wake of deep divisions over Britain's place within the union.

Mr Wharton wants a law to enshrine David Cameron's promise of an in-out referendum in 2017. The Prime Minister wants the four years to try to renegotiate Britain's place in the European Union and repatriate powers that have been handed to Brussels.

It comes after Tories were annoyed that there was no mention of it in the coalition government's agenda for new laws over the coming year. The Liberal Democrats have refused to back such a policy.

Labour is set to abstain in what Wolverhampton North East MP and shadow Europe minister Emma Reynolds criticised as an internal matter for the Tories, who have been divided over the EU and lost council seats because of a rise in support for the UK Independence Party.

Miss Reynolds will attend the debate because of her portfolio but is not planning to speak or vote.

She said: "This bill could lead to four years of uncertainty where businesses considering investing in Britain could be put off by the question over whether or not we will leave the EU.

"Labour MPs want to be in their constituencies. It is where I would rather be on a Friday and where I would be were I not shadow Europe minister.

"We are not going to call our people back to Westminster to debate something that is a political matter within the Conservative party."

Wolverhampton South East MP and former business minister Pat McFadden criticised the way the Tories had brought the bill before Parliament, using a private members' bill rather than making it part of the government's legislative agenda.

Mr McFadden said: "If we are going to have a referendum it should be a government-proposed bill.

"If there were specific plans to transfer powers to the EU we would have a referendum anyway. This will just mean uncertainty for the next few years."

But Conservatives say they want the referendum to end the debate over Britain's place in the union.

Margot James, MP for Stourbridge, said: "It has been several decades since the British people were asked for their views on Europe in a referendum. It is important to wait until the country has had a chance to seek reforms which I hope will be achieved. Labour's argument is that they don't want four years of uncertainty but we could get this done sooner if they would support us."

South Staffordshire MP Gavin Williamson added: "There has not been a referendum on Britain's place in Europe in my lifetime. I want to see the repatriation of powers and if after that it is something people are still unhappy with they will be able to have their say on the country's future."

The move could help to draw a line under an internal Tory row that has been raging for years and even saw members of the 2010 intake of Tories rebel against Mr Cameron just a year after taking office.

Halesowen and Rowley Regis MP James Morris and Dudley South's Chris Kelly voted for a referendum alongside long-standing Eurosceptics like Stone's Bill Cash in 2011. Mr Morris said:

"MPs who choose not to support this Bill will have a tough job explaining to voters why they don't trust the public to take such an important decision."

Lichfield MP Michael Fabricant added: "I voted for the Common Market all those years ago but since then the EU has changed dramatically. If David Cameron can renegotiate our relationship back to a single market, I will be satisfied. Otherwise I will vote to leave the EU in 2017."