Advertisement

Cameron's Charm Offensive To Woo EU Leaders

David Cameron's opening gambit in an EU charm offensive will be to plead with world leaders not to dismiss his renegotiation demands as "too difficult", arguing that the British public will no longer accept the "status quo".

Government officials have told Sky News that the Prime Minister will urge the EU commission president and European counterparts to "work with us" as he tries to find a solution ahead of an EU referendum.

One possible stumbling block is that fact that a number of other leaders do not want to bow to Mr Cameron's demands for treaty change ahead of a referendum in Britain.

"There is a strong sense that people are not happy with the status quo, and there are issues that the EU needs to address," said a Whitehall source.

"The referendum is on so we need countries to work with us to find a solution - not just to say it is too difficult."

Mr Cameron is starting by dining with the Commission president, Jean-Claude Juncker, at Chequers.

Then, following Wednesday's Queen's Speech, he will begin a tour of Europe, meeting the leaders of Denmark, the Netherlands and France on Thursday, and then Poland and Germany on Friday.

The plan is to meet all 27 EU leaders in person ahead of an EU summit at the end of June.

After stressing why he believes the renegotiation is needed, Mr Cameron will split his demands into a few key areas:

:: First he will argue that Britain's "sovereignty" remains key. The Prime Minister will insist he is no isolationist and does not want to pull up the drawbridge. But he will argue in favour of flexibility and co-operation and not an "ever-closer political union".

:: He also wants to ensure protection for countries, like Britain, outside the Euro, ensuring that the EU recognises that it is a multi-currency union. Officials fear that in the current system Eurozone countries can "tip the balance in favour" of themselves.

:: Then he will push for a better deal for business by significantly reducing EU red tape – a demand that is likely to be the easiest to achieve as it is shared by many other world leaders.

:: Lastly, he will push for his demand that EU migrants are barred from benefits for four years after arriving in Britain or another country. The Prime Minister has conceded that he will not get any changes to the principle of freedom of movement, but he wants his welfare demands to be secured by treaty change that could be difficult to achieve. Officials said the welfare reforms could make Britain a "less attractive" destination for migrants.