UK’s Cameron caught ‘in a bind’ over EU talks By AFP

Britain’s Prime Minister David Cameron is “in a
bind” in talks with European Union partners over
changes he needs to avoid a so-called “Brexit”,
political scientist Thierry Chopin said on Tuesday.
There is consensus in Europe on the need to keep
Britain in, but pressure from eurosceptics within
Cameron’s Conservative party has led him to
make “unacceptable” demands, said Chopin,
research director at the Robert Schuman
Foundation in Paris.
The following is a series of questions and
answers with Chopin, who is also a lecturer at
France’s Sciences Po university and an associate
researcher at the London School of Economics.
Can Cameron and the EU reach a deal?
A positive outcome is possible on several points,
such as deepening the single market or
strengthening the role of national parliaments.
But at this stage, the sticking point concerns the
limitation of access to social benefits by European
migrants to Britain.
It undermines the idea of freedom of movement
and, ultimately, leads to discrimination between
EU citizens based on their nationality.
It seems impossible from a legal point of view as
treaties would need to be revised and I see no
country willing to go in that direction today.
Legal guarantees can ensure fair treatment
between members and non-members of the
eurozone.
But on this issue, there is a second red line:
removing the compulsory nature of the adoption
of the single currency is not acceptable to other
member states.
It is not possible to make Britain’s exceptional
derogation on monetary matters the rule.
Is Cameron stuck in a political trap?
There’s a feeling of being caught in a bind,
between on the one hand pressure from the
eurosceptic wing of his party and also by the UK
Independence Party on the right.
On the other, he’s blocked by what his European
partners are willing to grant him.
Domestically, whatever concessions he gets, those
pushing for a Brexit tell him it’s not enough.
In Europe, some British demands are
unacceptable.
On the question of social benefits, which is part
of a populist discourse, it would be good to
remember fairly simple things.
For example, the fact that the free movement of
EU citizens has a rather limited impact on
national welfare systems, and that it is the
member states who set the rules at home with
regard to social security benefits.
London and its European partners could also
agree on the fact that we must fight abuse: this is
the challenge of a new directive on the posting of
workers to other EU member states.
Are all member states really committed to
keeping the UK in the EU?
There is a general consensus for keeping the
United Kingdom in the EU and to try to help
David Cameron to obtain a positive outcome in
negotiations before the British referendum.
Germany in particular is a clear supporter of
keeping Britain in the EU, not least because it is a
key market for German exports.
But Berlin has a very different vision of the
future of the union because of the euro. Given the
succession of crises affecting the EU and the
eurozone, Germany’s response has always been
more Europe and more integration.
France is also in favour of keeping Britain in the
EU, although many French consider the country a
“troublemaker”.
It is an important country for Paris
diplomatically, and also with regards to defence
and energy, including nuclear. For France in
particular, the UK has always been a useful
counterweight to Germany.