But the bloc has still not adopted the Lisbon treaty, aimed to reform and streamline EU institutions and many Europeans consider the European Union to be remote and unresponsive to their needs.

VOA: standard.2009.09.16

But his Conservative counterpart William Hague said Mr Miliband and his colleagues were "ramming that constitution through under a new name and refusing to give voters a say at an election or a referendum" - a reference to the EU Reform treaty.

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EU's reform treaty still before the British parliament for ratification.

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EU's lack of democratic accountability (acutely felt by the British, who dislike the reform treaty that Mr Brown aims to ratify without a referendum) won't solve themselves.

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