Icelandic Centre Party leader says referendum will not compel EU talks
Select a version of the text written from a presumed ideological perspective. This is not the original text, but a hypothetical version — how someone with that viewpoint might have phrased it. Tapping the current version again will return to the original or select cleaned version.
Centre Party head Sigmundur Davíð Gunnlaugsson argues that the upcoming EU membership referendum lacks a binding mandate, and downplays U.S. rhetoric about Greenland.
Iceland’s Centre Party leader Sigmundur Davíð Gunnlaugsson said the country’s referendum on restarting EU membership talks does not obligate the government to begin negotiations, even if the “Yes” side wins. He noted that the referendum wording is vague and could be satisfied merely by asking the EU what it would offer Iceland, without committing to a formal accession process.
Gunnlaugsson, who served as prime minister when Iceland abandoned its earlier EU bid in 2015, questioned whether a future foreign minister or prime minister could consider the job done after a single inquiry to Brussels. He added that the current Social Democrat-led government has not explained how to honor a “Yes” vote.
The former prime minister, whose Centre Party polls at about 15 percent, described his party as “small-c” conservative and centrist, rejecting the populist label often applied by opponents. In June, the party joined the European Conservatives and Reformists group in the European Parliament, which includes right-wing parties from Italy and Poland.
A Gallup poll in mid-August showed a narrow lead for the “Yes” camp at 51.5 percent. The vote, scheduled for Aug. 29, asks whether negotiations on Iceland’s EU membership should restart. While some pro-EU campaigners cite President Donald Trump’s remarks about Greenland as a geopolitical reason for closer ties to the bloc, Gunnlaugsson dismissed the comments as hyperbole and said he did not see a real threat of invasion.
On the issue of Schengen, Gunnlaugsson said Iceland should consider stronger border controls but does not support leaving the zone if the referendum results in a “No.” The party’s deputy chair, Snorri Másson, expressed concern about rising immigration and suggested a review of the free-movement provisions within the European Economic Area, though he stopped short of calling for an exit.