UK unveils EU referendum plan in Queen’s speech

Britain’s first Conservative-only government in nearly two decades on Wednesday unveiled its legislative agenda, confirming plans for tougher immigration policies, a referendum for the EU membership by the end of 2017 and more autonomy for Scotland.

In a speech to mark the official reopening of Parliament after the May 7 general election, Queen Elizabeth II read out a list of bills that Prime Minister David Cameron’s government will attempt to pass through Parliament over the coming session.

The 89-year-old Queen laid out plans for an in-out EU referendum by the end of 2017 among other key policies drafted by Cameron’s team after his surprise victory in polls.

It is now official that the UK government will try to reform Britain’s relationship with the European Union (EU) and then offer the public a yes or no referendum on leaving the union.

Titled as a “One Nation” programme, the British monarch read out the 26-bill package from her throne at the House of Lords as part of an elaborate royal tradition which involves a lot of pomp and ceremony. “My government will legislate in the interests of everyone in the country. It will adopt a one nation approach, helping working people get on, supporting aspiration, giving new opportunities to the disadvantaged and bringing different parts of our country together,” she said. 

Other important bills include a proposal to devolve more power to England, Wales and Scotland from Westminster, where the national Parliament sits. The government said it would introduce legislation to transfer significant powers to the Scottish Parliament, making it one of the most powerful devolved parliaments in the world. The home secretary will have new powers to ban extremists groups, and law-enforcement and local authorities will be able to close down premises that they deem are used to support extremism. Employers will also be able to ban suspected extremists from working with children.

A new immigration bill will allow police to seize the wages of anyone employed unlawfully.

Many of the proposed new laws were promised by the Conservatives during the general election campaign but Cameron will be able to press ahead with plans previously blocked by coalition partners Liberal Democrats after winning an overall majority on May 7. These include an Investigatory Powers Bill, dubbed snooper’s charter by the British media, to give intelligence agencies new tools to target Internet data.