Tuesday, May 26, 2015
Britain to end up in the slow lane of two speed Europe?
The news in today's Telegraph that Angela Merkel, the German Chancellor, and Francois Hollande, the French President, have reached an agreement to create a closer union within the bounds of existing EU treaties could leave Britain struggling to keep up.
The paper reports that the pact, which is due to be presented at an EU summit next month, could limit David Cameron's room for manoeuvre as he tries to claw back powers from Brussels ahead of a referendum on Britain's membership.
The danger is that as Cameron seeks to limit Britain's involvement in Europe, he will also reduce our influence and limit the benefits we get from the community. It is now looking increasingly likely that the European Community will develop a two speed economy in which the Eurozone countries will get more and more from closer working whilst the refusniks are left behind.
That is not an argument for the UK to join the Eurozone, but it is a reason why we need to work more closely with those who have chosen this route, rather than alienating them by threats and continuous renegotiations of our treaty obligations.
The paper reports that the pact, which is due to be presented at an EU summit next month, could limit David Cameron's room for manoeuvre as he tries to claw back powers from Brussels ahead of a referendum on Britain's membership.
The danger is that as Cameron seeks to limit Britain's involvement in Europe, he will also reduce our influence and limit the benefits we get from the community. It is now looking increasingly likely that the European Community will develop a two speed economy in which the Eurozone countries will get more and more from closer working whilst the refusniks are left behind.
That is not an argument for the UK to join the Eurozone, but it is a reason why we need to work more closely with those who have chosen this route, rather than alienating them by threats and continuous renegotiations of our treaty obligations.
