Judge urges Brown to delay EU treaty ratification

LONDON (Reuters) - A British High Court judge called on the government on Friday to delay the formal ratification of the European Union treaty until he has ruled on a legal challenge to force a referendum.

Britain's parliament ratified the treaty last week but the process is not formalized until the government deposits what is known as the instrument of ratification in Rome.

Separately, the High Court is reviewing whether it was legal to ratify the treaty without a referendum in a case brought by euroskeptic millionaire Stuart Wheeler.

Lord Justice Richards, who is hearing the case, urged the government to hold off completing ratification until his final ruling, Wheeler said.

"The government's solicitors wrote to the High Court judge who heard the case, saying that as a matter of courtesy they were telling the judge that they intended to ratify, without waiting for the British judgment," Wheeler told BBC Radio.

"In response to that the judge has issued very strongly worded directions inviting them to agree not to ratify it until judgment had been given," he said.

The court was not immediately available for comment.

Prime Minister Gordon Brown, speaking at an EU summit in Brussels, said the government would not complete the ratification until it had heard the court's ruling.

A ruling on the case is expected next week, Wheeler said.

(Editing by Charles Dick)