REDDITCH MP Karen Lumley says she will vote against staying in the EU and in favour of a British exit.
Speaking at lunchtime today (Monday, February 22) the MP said she made up her mind early yesterday after returning from Serbia where, as chairman of the All Parliamentary Group on Serbia she had been holding talks with business leaders and student representatives.
“I have decided I will be voting to leave,” she said.
“I promised the Prime Minister three weeks ago that I would wait to see how the result of the negotiations. I do think he has won some good concessions however my main issue is over sovereignty.
“We have to look after our own house here; the EU is undemocratic and I think the £50 million a day that is spent running the EU could be better spent here.”
She added that the decision of Boris Johnson to join the Brexit campaign hadn’t influenced her as she had already made her mind up before he made his announcement.
“I wrote to my association chairman this morning explaining what I was doing and I shall write an article for my website later today and I also want to listen to the Prime Minister at 3pm,” she added.
Joining the Brexit campaign does put her on the same side as some unlikely bedfellows, including firebrand socialist George Galloway and the leader of Ukip, Nigel Farage, however Mrs Lumley insisted she would not be sitting alongside other political parties during the campaigning.
She also said that she would be happy to explain her position should the people of Redditch hold a debate on the in/out issue.
“I have just got the same vote as anyone else but everyone has a view one way or the other and if people want a public meeting to state their case, to ask questions or to be better informed, then that is fine.”
She also praised Prime Minister David Cameron for holding the referendum on the issue.
“He promised the people of Britain that they should have a referendum and he has delivered,” she said.
On the negotiations she said: “I would have liked to have us being able to make our own laws in our own country.
“I would have wanted to see the Working Time Directive to be decided in this country.
“Why do we have two parliaments in two different locations? We have a lot of elected politicians who really don’t have a great meaning to the people of the UK and this is our first chance in 41 years to have our say on the matter.”
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