European Union

In the aftermath of another inverse-whirlwind session in Brussels which has set the date of the UK's EU referendum for June 23, below are comments on the vote from British political and business leaders, courtesy of Reuters:

DAVID CAMERON, BRITISH PRIME MINISTER

"I do not love Brussels. I love Britain. I am the first to say that there are still many ways in which Europe needs to improve – and that the task of reforming Europe does not end with today's agreement.

 

On Friday, David Cameron trumpeted a “deal” the British PM says he secured with the EU that will reduce the UK’s financial burden as it relates to refugees and other EU nations.

To be sure, the “agreement” seems more symbolic than anything. Indeed, it’s not even clear exactly what it is Cameron accomplished with negotiations in Brussels. Apparently, the UK won concessions on welfare curbs and financial regulation, and the ambiguity surrounding the agreement didn’t stop the PM from proclaiming he had secured “special status” for Britain in the EU.

Via GEFIRA,

If London decides to leave the European Union nobody in Europe will even notice. Great Britain is an entirely separate country, isolated from the European Union and does not participate in the Euro or Schengen Agreement. The European Union as a political platform is disintegrating and becoming more and more irrelevant and will be displaced by the European Monetary Union (EMU).

"I was here till 5 o'clock this morning working through this and we've made some progress but there's still no deal.”

That’s from British PM David Cameron, who was apparently up all night in an effort to understand why his country should stay in the EU. Unless Cameron hears what he wants to hear, he will not campaign for the UK to remain in the bloc ahead of an expected referendum on membership in June.

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