Britain will find itself “dragged along” into an ever more integration European Union if it does not vote to leave, Boris Johnson has said.
The Mayor of London wrote in his column for the Daily Telegraph newspaper that European federalists “mean it” when they said they wanted a full political union.
Citing the Five Presidents Report released by the EU institutions last year, he argued that Britain’s deal would not prevent the pooling of tax and budget policy.
“They want to prop up the euro by creating an all-out economic government of Europe.
“They want a euro-area treasury, with further pooling of tax and budgetary policy.
“They want to harmonise insolvency law, company law, property rights, social security systems – and there is no way the UK can be unaffected by this process,” he wrote.
“The federalists do mean it when they sketch out these programmes. The ratchet is clicking forwards. When you come to vote, the status quo is not on offer.”
Mr Johnson warned that inclusion in the single market meant policies to bring the EU closer together would affect all 28 member states – not just members of the euro.
He argued that conditions in David Cameron’s EU deal that said Britain should not stop other countries from enacting closer union meant it could not exercise a veto in this area.
David Cameron agreed a reform package with other EU leaders earlier this year he however said would give Britain an opt-out from any further integration.
Other measures included in the deal are protections of the single market for countries outside the euro, a wave of deregulation, and restrictions on in-work benefits for EU migrants.
Mr Johnson is campaigning for a 'no' vote in the EU in-out referendum, which will be held on 23 June this year.
