By all accounts, the EU Reform Treaty is a "cut down" version of the constitution, containing a varying percentage of the constitution depending on who you believe.

If the governments argument against holding a referendum is that the EU Reform Treaty is too complicated for the public to understand, why did they say that they would hold a referendum on the constitution. If the constitution contained everything in the EU Reform Treaty and more, surely it would have been even more difficult to understand.

I believe that governments across Europe should start consulting their electorates before ratifying these treaties. Polls have shown that this is what the people want, it's about time that the politicians started listening.

Martin, Winchester, Hampshire

Just because you hope your Parliamentary colleagues will get bored with discussing the detail, Brown, don't even think that the electorate will. We shall get that referendum that was promised, with or without your presence in the Prime Minister's post.

Roz Venner, St Neots, England

Mr. Brown's refusal of a referendum reinforces the view that politicians are creatures of expediency. They make promises but when carrying out those promises becomes incovenient they swiftly find reasons to backtrack.

A. Bravey, Coleshill, Warks.,

The Irish now have the weight of all the people of Europe on their shoulders, only they can speak for us now...

Adrian, Aldershot, England

The fact that the maastricht treaty should never have been ratified without a referendum, is not a mitigating factor in Browns favour, indeed quite it's quite the opposite, beign in the EEC was one a choice made by the people, but being annexed by the EU-state was not, Lady Thatcher hoodwinked the nation, we are NOT letting Brown do the same.
By ignoring the electorate, Brown is signing his own, and NuLabours political death warrant along with the treaty, his arrogance in the face of the obvious wishes of the public for a referendum, will not as he hopes be forgotten come the next election.

Les, Southport, England.

As well as being a tool of demagogues and dictators the referendum is also the bete noir of patronizing and matronly leaders like Margaret Thatcher. Last time I looked, Switzerland and Ireland whose constitutions mandate referendums, were not hot beds of dictatorship or demagoguery. A referendum causes work for politicians to get out there and sell their case. Like all overpaid and lazy people, representatives who'd prefer a cosy debate and a one off vote in the House to a marathon on the hustings will eschew referendums. Like all rational, hard working people who recognize the flaws in representative democracy, pro referendum MPs acknowledge that they are necessary because voters don't trust them to faithfully represent their wishes once they get into the Westminster club.

Pitt the very much older, Hong Kong,

You say that the Government will claim that the Reform Treaty is too complex to be put to a referendum and that it does not represent fundamental change and therefore does not need a referendum for ratification.
The former is just illogical since it simply is not more complex that the Constitution for which a referendumm was promised.
The latter may be a matter of opinion, but the Government will have to show that the changes included are significantly less fundamental than those contained in the constitution. Mere assertion will not do.

Stephen Bull, fontes, france

Quote from above; "the document is too complex to be decided by referendum." What an arrogant comment and how dismissive of the people of this country. Brown obviously feels that we are not any more capable of making a choice on the referendum than we are on voting in a General Election! Will he ever have the courage of exposing his policies to the judgement of the people he purports to represent?

Mike S, Nottingham,

Whilst Brown desperately scratches around for his legacy England burns

Jonathan, Auckland, New Zealand

To:Francis Elliott and David Charter in Lisbon

'"Gordon Brown has set aside up to three months to ratify the new EU reform treaty, raising the spectre of the tumultuous parliamentary battles over Maastricht 15 years ago."

there was only one battle at Maastricht and that was 20 Years ago;remember the legendary and famous speach of Lady Baroness Margaret Thatcher!

e_widiner, Shanghai , China

By the time Mr Brown realises his mistake he will no longer be in power but future governments will be restricted. The reality here is that we do not live in a democracy we are rules by less than 1% of the political class who believe we are not intelligent enough to formulate a correct decision. We constantly hear that non democratic regimes around the world are evil and need to change but as far as I can tell there is no difference between China and the UK, both are controlled by a minority irrespective of the wishes of the majority but at least in China it is honest and clear where in the UK it is done by stealth, spin and dishonesty.

With this constitution (independent analysis agrees the treaty is identical) we will lose even more say.

Before we slide any further please restore Britain to a true democratic country.

Joe, Edinburgh, Scotland

Then Parliament must do its duty and reject the consti-treaty.

One cannot imagine the British people swallowing this.

Brown is finished if he doesn't call a referendum.

Jim, Milwaukee, USA

I don't think it will be possible for Brown to recover from this in the minds of the British people. His anti-democratic desires are being laid bare for the world to see.

Graham, Manchester, UK