PM: I Was 'Misinterpreted' On EU Ultimatum

David Cameron has said he was "misinterpreted" over comments that suggested he had given ministers an ultimatum on the EU referendum.

Speaking at the G7 summit in Germany, Mr Cameron said he did not intend to imply that ministers who did not back a yes vote on the EU referendum should resign.

He said: "It is clear to me that what I said yesterday was misinterpreted. I was clearly referring to the process of renegotiation.

"But the point is this. I have always said what I want is an outcome for Britain that keeps us in a reformed EU. But I have also said we don't know the outcome of these negotiations, which is why I have always said I rule nothing out.

"Therefore it would be wrong to answer hypothetical questions. I know that can be frustrating. I know you want to jump to the end of the process and have all the questions answered now about the end of that process.

"That is not going to be possible. You are going to have to take this stage by stage, step by step and you will get the answers."

It came after Number 10 was forced to clarify Mr Cameron's position, in attempt to play down his comments, saying there had been an "over-interpretation" of his words and he had only been talking about ministers backing the renegotiation talks - and not the referendum.

Speaking at the G7 in Bavaria on Sunday, the Prime Minister said the Government would not be "neutral" during the in-out referendum campaign.

"We have a clear view: renegotiate, get a deal that's in Britain's interest and then recommend Britain stays in it," he said.

In what was widely interpreted as a warning shot to Eurosceptic Tory MPs, Mr Cameron added: "If you want to be part of the Government, you have to take the view that we are engaged in an exercise of renegotiation to have a referendum that will lead to a successful outcome.

"Everyone in government has signed up to the programme set out in the Conservative manifesto."

Speaking to Sky News, Boris Johnson, who sits in the Cabinet and has been outspoken on the EU, said: "Clearly it is very important to go into the negotiations with the strongest possible position and that means that if you don't like the deal that you get, to be able to walk away."

He added: "If the Prime Minister does not get what he wants and does not get the reform that he wants in Brussels - and again I think that very, very, very, very unlikely - but if he were to fail in that ambition then clearly he will be recommending a 'no' to the British public, I imagine."

Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond, Defence Secretary Michael Fallon and Work and Pensions Secretary Iain Duncan Smith are all considered to be Eurosceptic and have previously spoken about leaving the EU.

Conservative MP David Davis told Sky News: "It would be quite wrong for somebody who, in all conscience, believes we should leave to be told you cannot say that, you cannot do that, just because you are a minister."

He said: "It is vital that ordinary decent honourable members of the government - ministers in the Cabinet or junior ministers - are allowed, as everybody else is, to vote the way they want, speak the way they want, campaign the way they want."

He added: "But it should be made very, very clear indeed that after that point they are free men and women to do as all free men and women in Britain can do in the referendum - vote the way they want."

Mr Cameron also gave a strong hint that the in-out referendum could be held on 5 May 2016 – when elections to local authorities, the Scottish Parliament and the Welsh Assembly will be held.

Stating he was "open-minded" to holding the EU vote on the same day as other polls, the Prime Minister added: "The British public are quite capable of going to a polling booth and making two important decisions rather than just one."

The Electoral Commission has previously advised that the in-out referendum should not clash with local elections.

Mr Cameron's strongest words on the topic of his own potential rebels came the day before his EU Referendum Bill is debated in the Commons for the first time.

He is in Germany at a summit of world leaders, where Number 10 had suggested that Britain's renegotiation of its relationship with the EU was not on the agenda.

But concerns about the UK's exit from the union were nonetheless mentioned by Barack Obama, prior to his talks with Mr Cameron.

The President said the US-UK relationship remains strong , adding: "We have no closer partner around the world."

He told reporters: "I would note that one of the great values of having the United Kingdom in the European Union is its leadership and strength on a whole host of global challenges.

"So we very much are looking forward to the United Kingdom staying part of the European Union because we think its influence is positive not just for Europe, but also for the world."

Mr Cameron, who recently embarked on a tour of Europe to seek support in his bid to renegotiate Britain's relationship with Brussels, has said he is "shooting for" any reforms to be "legally binding". This suggests something short of full EU treaty change by 2017.

The Prime Minister also dismissed the concerns of some backbenchers that the EU Referendum Bill allows the Government to take sides during the traditional pre-poll period of "purdah".

He will spend another day with world leaders in Germany before restarting initial renegotiation talks at an EU summit later this week.

Although he hopes to start the talks in earnest at a summit at the end of the month, the agenda is already packed with the challenges posed by Russia, Greece and the Eurozone.