Gove and Hammond would say No to Europe... and seven Cabinet colleagues including Duncan Smith privately agree Michael Gove and Philip Hammond yesterday became the first Cabinet ministers to say publicly that they would vote for Britain to leave the EU. Government sources said at least seven of their senior colleagues agreed privately. Mr Gove said life outside the EU "would be perfectly tolerable." Mr Hammond, when asked if he would vote to leave if significant powers cannot be reclaimed, replied: "Yes." The revelations will pile pressure on David Cameron to make clear that he would lead an "Out" campaign if he does not secure a major change in Britain's relationship with Brussels. If he cannot negotiate a new deal, Chris Grayling, Iain Duncan Smith, Owen Paterson, Justine Greening, Francis Maude, Theresa Villiers and Oliver Letwin would all reportedly favour an EU exit. Some Tories are calling for another, earlier referendum seeking a mandate to claw back powers from Brussels, held on the same day as next year's European elections. Mr Cameron's inner circle is concerned that, instead of taking a clear stance on Europe and putting pressure on Labour, the Prime Minister's pledge to hold an in/out referendum in 2017 - after negotiating looser ties - has prompted Eurosceptics to push harder. Some have tabled an amendment to the Queen's Speech that could be put to a vote tomorrow, lamenting the lack of any legislation in this Parliament guaranteeing a referendum in the next one. They argue that even though such a Bill would have little chance of being passed by the Commons, voters would be reassured that Mr Cameron meant what he said. Mr Gove said yesterday that he and other ministers would abstain in this week's vote - but added that Tory backbenchers and ministerial aides would be free to vote in favour, a process he described as "letting off steam." Downing Street had briefly contemplated giving Cabinet ministers free rein to join around 100 Eurosceptic MPs and back the amendment - but the potential government rebellion was deemed too much to bear. Asked whether he thought Britain should leave the EU if there were a referendum today, Mr Gove told the BBC's Andrew Marr Show: "Yes, I'm not happy with our position in the European Union. But my preference is for a change in Britain's relationship with the European Union. My ideal is what the majority of the British public's ideal is, which is to recognise the current situation is no good, to say that life outside would be perfectly tolerable, we could contemplate it, there would be certain advantages. But the best deal for Europe, and for Britain, would be if Britain were to lead the change that Europe needs. My own view is, let the Prime Minister lay out our negotiating strategy, make sure he has a majority - which I am convinced he will secure at the next election - and let's have the referendum then. Mr Gove, touted as a potential successor to Mr Cameron, dismissed Labour's claims that allowing Tory MPs to back the Queen's Speech motion showed the party was in turmoil, claiming: "You can't have a civil war when everyone is on the same side." However, he admitted that "some of my colleagues want to let off steam." After Mr Gove's interview, Mr Hammond, asked on the BBC's Pienaar's Politics radio programme whether he would vote to leave the EU as things stand, replied: "Yes, because I believe that we have to negotiate a better solution that works better for Britain if we are going to stay in and play a part in the European Union in the future. But let me be absolutely clear: I think it is defeatist to sort of say we want to leave the European Union. We're going to try and change the rules and change the way it works and change the objectives that it has in order to make it something that works for Britain. However, he added: "If the choice is between an EU exactly as it is today and not being a part of that then I have to say that I'm on the side of the argument that Michael Gove has put forward." Eurosceptic former Defence Secretary Liam Fox said he would support the Queen's Speech amendment, adding that the biggest problem was "letting Labour off the hook, because it's quite clear the Labour party have no intentions of giving the British people a say on this most fundamental issue." In his Daily Telegraph column, Boris Johnson said he supported legislation backing a referendum - but warned colleagues that Britain's problems will not be solved by simply leaving the EU. 'If we left the EU, we would end this sterile debate, and we would have to recognise that most of our problems are not caused by "Bwussels," but by chronic British short-termism, inadequate management, sloth, low skills, a culture of easy gratification and underinvestment in both human and physical capital and infrastructure,' he wrote.