Prime Minister David Cameron\u2019s hopes to secure a reform deal on Britain\u2019s relationship with the European Union.<\/p>\n
A Number 10 source said the first session of the highly-anticipated European Council meeting had ended with a \u201csignificant gap on a number of issues\u201d, including Cameron\u2019s plans to obtain new safeguards for the City of London and a limit on welfare benefits for EU migrants.<\/p>\n
EU leaders are also understood to be at odds over Cameron\u2019s proposals to\u00a0exempt Britain from the EU\u2019s \u201cever closer union\u201d commitment, as well as his desire for all 28 EU member states to sign up to a future treaty change.<\/p>\n
Cameron told reporters earlier yesterday that he would be \u201cbattling for Britain\u201d at the negotiating table.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve got some important work to do today and tomorrow and it\u2019s going to be hard,\u201d Cameron said, adding, \u201cIf we can get a good deal, I\u2019ll take that deal. But I will not take a deal that doesn\u2019t meet what we need.\u201d<\/p>\n
Cameron had hoped to hammer out a final agreement today, paving the way for an in\/out vote on Britain\u2019s EU\u00a0membership as soon as 23 June. Yet last night\u2019s gridlock raised questions about whether a deal \u2013 and a referendum \u2013 are likely to happen anytime soon.<\/p>\n
Cameron has promised to hold the\u00a0referendum by the end of 2017.<\/p>\n
Bloomberg reported that Cameron had made a surprise bid to\u00a0extend a so-called emergency brake on welfare payments to non-British citizens for a total of 13 years, nearly double the seven-year brake first proposed.<\/p>\n
The PM told EU leaders that they had a make-or-break opportunity to \u201csettle\u201d the issue of Britain\u2019s EU membership \u201cfor a generation\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe question of Britain\u2019s place in\u00a0Europe has been allowed to fester for too long and it is time to deal with it,\u201d Cameron said.<\/p>\n
Cameron is expected to hold multiple one-on-one meetings today in a last-ditch attempt to persuade other EU leaders to get behind his demands\u00a0before the European Council meeting officially resumes later this morning.<\/p>\n
The two-day meeting had been\u00a0scheduled to wrap up around lunchtime, but EU officials warned last night that negotiations could last well into the weekend if an agreement\u00a0cannot be reached.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Prime Minister David Cameron\u2019s hopes to secure a reform deal on Britain\u2019s relationship with the European Union. A Number 10 source said the first session of the highly-anticipated European Council meeting had ended with a \u201csignificant gap on a number … Continue reading