Nick Clegg claims the Conservatives are panicking over Ukip after reports David Cameron will make controls on EU migration a dealbreaker in his negotiations with the European Union.
Clegg said: “No Conservative has put a proposal to me, they have never breathed a word of this within government. Maybe the press briefing they will issue … [on Friday] will be different. The Conservatives have got a fundamental problem, they are running after Ukip in a complete panic.”
Speaking on LBC radio’s Call Clegg show, he said: “The Conservatives have got to ask themselves a really fundamental question,” adding, “If they constantly run after Ukip it has only one destination, which is that they become interchangeable with Ukip, which is what Boris Johnson seemed to imply last week.
“If that is the case, the Conservative party leadership need to come clean and say what they really want is to leave the EU and then let us have that debate. I think that would be disastrous. I believe in reform of the EU, but not to quit it. This constant shilly-shallying that they will move a little closer to Ukip is a disaster.”
At a meeting with Tory MPs earlier this week, Cameron hinted strongly he would be saying something major on migration from the EU shortly, and some newspapers suggested he would either demand quotas on skilled workers or an emergency brake to stop the flow of migrants. It’s likely the PM will need to say something in detail on his proposals before the end of the Rochester byelection.
Johnson, the London mayor, has long advocated quotas on EU skilled migrants, but this would probably require treaty change. Ed Balls, the shadow chancellor, said Labour should not be afraid of talking about treaty change on EU migration.
Clegg said: “One thing I have never done is run after Ukip. The one election where we went head to head with Ukip was in Eastleigh when our fortunes were more perilous than now.”
The deputy PM said Ukip were in a position to make fast changes to policy proposals. “They have got the luxury of saying stuff, change their mind the following day and say something different the following day, and it does not matter.
“Farage does it well because they are playing to people’s fears, and anger about mainstream politics, without any need to provide any answers. If they ever got into power it would be disastrous. We are in a phase in politics … [where] there is a lot of anger, there is a lot of resentment, it is very fertile territory for Nigel Farage – he does it well.”
• This article was amended on 16 October 2014 to correct part of Nick Clegg’s quote.
