David Cameron's Militant Tendency? ConservativeHome threatens civil war over Europe

UPDATE 13:22 Paul Waugh reports Cameron has just issued a non-denial denial on the “manifesto mandate” for EU renegotiation.

When Tim Montgomerie told a conference fringe event that ConservetiveHome would be “more disciplined” in the run up to the next general election, what he actually mean was that he’d be threatening civil war if he doesn’t get his own way on Europe:

“The effort to renegotiate must be real and all necessary guerilla tactics used to get our way out of arrangements that the British people have never okayed … If Britain’s relationship with the EU is fundamentally the same after five years of Conservative government the internal divisions that ended the last Tory period in government will look like a tea party in comparison” – Tim Montgomerie

As smug cheerleaders for a strident, anti-European conservatism, the left love to hate Hannan et al, who are viewed with schadenfreude as a political liability for Cameron. But, as Left Foot Forward reports, the consequences of Tory isolationism on Europe would be catastrophic if proposed renegotiation culminated in an opt out from the social chapter.

With the Conservatives – more than any time in the last fifteen years – looking poised to grasp power, it’s simply astonishing to see prominent figures queueing up to topple the apple cart.

More at Next Left, Left Foot Forward and Liberal Conspiracy with Montgomerie’s article here.