Cameron to insist on safeguards for Britain in new EU treaty
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Prime Minister David Cameron says he will only back a new European Union treaty if he secures safeguards for the City of London to protect Britain’s interests.
Writing in The Times today, Cameron (pictured) said he will not support a treaty that gives new tax and spend rules to the eurozone unless there are also rules to protect industries important to Britain, such as financial services.
He said: “We will need to look at the right safeguards for Britain in the light of what is proposed. Our colleagues in the EU need to know that we will not agree to a treaty change that fails to protect our interests.”
In last month’s autumn statement, Chancellor George Osborne defended the Government’s decision to reject the European Commission’s proposal for a financial transaction tax, saying it would be a tax on individual savers not banks. He said the tax must be rejected to ensure the UK remains at the centre of the global financial system.
Cameron warned German chancellor Angela Merkel and French president Nicolas Sarkozy that they cannot ignore Britain, even if the 17 eurozone members agree new rules.
He said eurozone members would require the blessing of the UK because the treaty would affect EU institutions such as the European Court of Justice.
But Cameron also told Conservative MPs that there are limits to what he can achieve in tomorrow’s talks in Brussels, which will see the 27 EU heads of government hammer out a solution to the euro crisis.
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