However, he added: “It follows from our desire to have a renegotiation that we must also be prepared to say, OK, fair enough, we can’t get the terms that are suitable, then we will walk away.”
He said the debate about the future of the EU was happening all across Europe, not just in the UK because of the “stratospheric unemployment rates”, arguing that the single currency was driving change to democracies.
Europe is “not competitive enough, open enough or flexible enough”, Mr Cameron said, adding Europe “must be flexible enough to accommodate” countries that are members of the single currency and those that are not.
He vowed to “stand up and defend” the UK’s financial services industry, particularly against damaging legislation from Brussels. The City is a “massive advantage” to the UK, he said, and warned that “we shouldn’t spend our time in politics bashing banks.”
He said that European leaders shouldn’t be “surprised” that the UK has opposed efforts to cap bonuses and introduce a financial transaction tax since London hosts 40pc of the EU’s financial services sector.
The Prime Minister said Britain faced a “sink or swim moment” in a global economic race and must drive economic reforms, including a new relationship with Europe, to stay on top.
He said the Government is driving through tax reductions, welfare reforms, infrastructure investment and trade deals to ensure the UK stays competitive globally.
What happened to the last “cast iron” promise on the matter? The PM is seen as a shameless trimmer. You can only lose the trust of the people once.
The EU taking on the City spivs is about its only redeeming feature!
Renegotiating imho is just a smokescreen and as a result people will srill vote Farage, since he is perceived as having cojones. Does the PM believe in anything at all aside from vacuous generalities? Yes he believes in him being in charge, power but to no purpose. nuff said
Can the uk “renegotiate” the human rights nonsense? just so. It is in truth is a simple in or out decision that had been fudged for far too long. Its “put up or shut up” time.
To add some emphasis to this decision on whether we leave the EU or stay… we need to consider the impact on our live, our country, our future…. should we stay.
The EU elite are still rushing to create a (socialist) federal state, clearly with the democratic process a low priority. If we stay, we will be sucked into this and the euro – our country will not be our own, and most importantly our future will be decided by an executive that is comprised of third rate politicians horse-traded into positions of power.
There are so many things wrong with the EU it is hard to be concise, but fundamentally it is structurally unsound and totally unfit for purpose, based, as it is, on a system that encourages corruption and provides a total lack of accountability.
Should disaster strike and allow the conspiring libdems and labour into government, then we can kiss goodbye to any thoughts of independence or even reform.
While I can see the sincerity with which DC approaches the EU reforms, I would say he’s not asking for enough, for we all know any gains will be watered down.
Yet, I can’t emphasise this enough – as potential government in the making, the EU just doesn’t work. It is totally unfit to make decisions for any of us.
The UK model of government, at least what remains after constant labour meddling, is one that has served us well and is reasonably open – The EU model is artificial and secretive.
It is so timely that the swell of disgust at the EU is rising behind UKIP, for this may be the last opportunity we may ever have to remove ourselves from the clutches of the EU – It has to be now.
The general election will decide this, for if UKIP win a latge proportion of votes, then that will surely be the mandate for us to declare UDI
Boris I assume your apparently ill-advised statement quoted in the DT re slothful British workers,was in fact a coded reference to Ken Clarke’s slothful non reading of the Maastricht treaty and his smug pride in not doing his job.