* Cameron renews pledge to hold Lisbon referendum
* Poll shows 8 in 10 supporters want vote even if ratified
(Adds William Hague quotes)
By Stefano Ambrogi
LONDON, Oct 3 (Reuters) - British opposition leader David
Cameron renewed his pledge on Saturday to hold a referendum on
the EU's reform treaty if he wins power next year and the treaty
has still not come into force.
Irish voters backed the treaty in Friday's referendum,
leaving the Czech and Polish leaders as the only heads of state
that have yet to sign the document before it can take effect.
"There will be no change in our policy on Europe. There will
be no change in Conservative policy as long as the Lisbon Treaty
is still not in force," said Cameron, who leads the centre-right
Conservative party, widely tipped to win a parliamentary
election due by next June.
"I have said repeatedly that I want us to have a referendum.
If the treaty is not ratified in all member states and not in
force when the election is held, and if we are elected, then we
will hold a referendum on it."
The British parliament ratified the Lisbon treaty after the
Labour government rejected Conservative calls for a referendum.
The Conservatives say they will reverse Britain's
ratification if voters reject it in their planned poll.
William Hague, the party's foreign affairs policy chief,
said he respected Ireland's decision, but said the treaty had
"no democratic legitimacy" in Britain.
"The government now needs to explain why the Irish people
have had to vote twice when the British people have not been
allowed to vote once," he said.
Despite the convincing Irish vote, Eurosceptic Cameron said
he would name a referendum date during the election campaign.
While the Polish president looks set to the sign the treaty
soon, a challenge at the Czech Constitutional Court has halted
Prague's ratification process for now. However, the Czech prime
minister believes the president will sign by the end of the
year. [] []
"The Czech prime minister has said that the constitutional
challenge before the Czech Constitutional Court could take three
to six months to resolve," Cameron said.
Cameron also said that even if the treaty, designed to
speed up decision-making, were ratified by all members, the
Conservatives would continue to fight it.
The Tory leader is mindful some Conservative right wingers
want a referendum even if all EU states have ratified it.
A survey of 2,205 party members undertaken by the
ConservativeHome.com website for the Independent newspaper on
Saturday found that more than eight in 10 supporters want him to
call a referendum even if it is approved.
"We have repeatedly said we would not let matters rest
there. But we have one policy at a time, and we will set out how
we would proceed in those circumstances if, and only if, they
happen."
(Editing by Alison Williams)
