UK isolates itself in the EU

[nasher168]

http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2011/dec/09/uk-isolation-grows-eurozone-treaty

The sense of unprecedented isolation afflicting Britain in Europe has been reinforced in Brussels after Hungary joined Sweden and the Czech Republic in reconsidering whether to take part in a new pact aimed at rescuing the euro.

Britain parted ways with the rest of Europe earlier on Friday morning when David Cameron dramatically wielded his veto to block Germany's drive to reopen the Lisbon treaty in an attempt to rescue the single currency.

Initially 23 of the 27 EU countries said they would ignore the British veto and negotiate a new pact outside the treaty. Later the other three waverers said they would take the agreement to their own parliaments, leaving the UK on its own.

The prime minister's unexpected move was seen as a watershed in Britain's fractious membership of the EU. He insisted on securing concessions on and exemptions from EU financial markets regulation as the price of his assent to the German-led euro salvation blueprint. The others balked, accusing Cameron of putting Britain's perceived interests ahead of resolving the EU's worst crisis.

I'm not pleased with our government at the moment. The reasoning behind the change to the Lisbon treaty is sound, and in any case more integration with Europe should be welcomed. Cameron is putting bullshit pandering to eurosceptics over the interests of the European economy and by extension our own economy.

 

[Prolescum]

I'm just sitting back watching people getting angrier and angrier at the front bench; Gove, Osborne, May, and Cameron are fast becoming hate figures.

Oh, nasher... I can't take credit for that beauty - blame Private Eye.

 

[nasher168]

That you read Private Eye surprises me this much: :|


The Lib Dems on the whole seem to be doing a good job of making their displeasure known so far, but Clegg is of course sticking with Cameron to make sure the Conservatives don't call an election and win it on their own.

Not only has he managed to piss off almost everyone else in the EU and a good number of people back home, he's also failed to get the compromises he was after. And to top it off with a lovely flourish, he's ensured the UK will play no part in the near future of the Eurozone.

Well played, sir. Well played.

 

[australopithecus]

...but Clegg is of course sticking with Cameron to make sure the Conservatives don't call an election and win it on their own.

I doubt they would. I think they've pissed off enough people to produce another hung parliament in that event, and I doubt the Lib Dems would make that mistake again. Clegg would be hung out to dry.

 

[Prolescum]

That you read Private Eye surprises me this much: :|


The Lib Dems on the whole seem to be doing a good job of making their displeasure known so far, but Clegg is of course sticking with Cameron to make sure the Conservatives don't call an election and win it on their own.

Cameron won't need to call another election, he can sit with a minority government. Not the best course, but Tories are known for being stubborn in the face of opposition...

Not only has he managed to piss off almost everyone else in the EU and a good number of people back home, he's also failed to get the compromises he was after. And to top it off with a lovely flourish, he's ensured the UK will play no part in the near future of the Eurozone.

Well played, sir. Well played.

Yeah, I can see that going down well with the Tory faithful... Watch UKIP's vote share go up next election.

 

[)O( Hytegia )O(]

Call it American ignorance -
but why is isolation from Europe a bad thing? I mean, the value of the British pound is pretty sturdy, and as long as you retain a seperate economic entity from the Euro then any problem with the Euro should not bring the Pound down.

One of the things I've understood the most from the problems with the Europian Union is that they tried to make a multi-state economy without a central issuance/controlling authority. If one country has a shitty economy then it drags down the rest of them.

 

[nasher168]

Well let's be honest, the UK might be fairly well-off, but I sincerely doubt countries like the US would take it so seriously if we weren't a powerful member of the EU. Who, for example, gives a fuck what Norway thinks? Without being an important EU country, the UK is just a washed-up little country still riding on its past glories as best it can.
And it might be harder for the UK to negotiate compromises with the EU now. In 1991, the government negotiated a deal where the UK got to stay out of the Euro. By leaving the UK out of the decision-making circles over some petty thing like this, the EU might be able force the UK to sign things that really are against our interests in future. We can't afford to leave the EU altogether and that could be used against us.

Also, I'm pro-federal EU, so I think anything that introduces more powers for Europe can only be a step in the right direction... but that's an unpopular view here and certainly not something the opposition would dare bring up.

 

[nudger1964]

i used to be very much pro a federal europe, including the uk.
i still am in principle. sadly thats all it is. in reality the same national interests still dictate everything. the need to be re-elected, pampering to public opinion. The Germans call the shots in europe and its not difficult at all to see the vested interest in their ideas for how europe should function.
The french reaction to britain was just as much about self serving politics.
i dont buy this stuff about britain being an insignificant little island without being a leading member of the union. Why? what difference does it make? either we offer goods and services that people want to buy, or we dont.
As it happens britain is still very strong in high technology and finacial services...those are our assets that we need to protect and build a future upon. Being part of the common market is the only thing that really matters. Being at the big boys table for discussions is little more than ego bating...who cares.
oh and i very much doubt the norwegians give a feck that no one cares what they think. They have the highest standard of living in the world... who are the fools!

Britian has always punched above its weight in terms of power and influence...that is our entire history....sometimes the world buys our bluff, sometimes it dosnt