David Cameron 'Warns UK Could Leave EU' Over Jean-Claude Juncker Appointment

David Cameron 'Warns UK Could Leave EU' Over Jean-Claude Juncker Appointment
PA | Posted: 01/06/2014 09:40 BST | Updated: 01/06/2014 09:59 BST

http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2014/06/01/david-cameron-uk-eu-jean-claude-juncker-_n_5425965.html?icid=maing-grid7%7Cuk-ws-bb%7Cdl1%7Csec1_lnk3%26pLid%3D268434

David Cameron has reportedly warned that Britain could leave the EU if Luxembourg ex-prime minister Jean-Claude Juncker becomes the next president of the European Commission.

German news magazine Der Spiegel claims the Prime Minister issued the warning to German Chancellor Angela Merkel at the EU leaders summit in Brussels on Tuesday.

Quoting sources close to those at the summit, the magazine said Cameron fears the appointment of continuity candidate Juncker would destabilise the UK Government to such an extent that it would bring forward an in-out EU referendum.

Cameron reportedly added: "A figure from the Eighties cannot resolve the problems of the next five years."

A Downing Street spokesman said: "We are not commenting on this. It was a private meeting, a private conversation."

Cameron has previously made it clear he views the former Luxembourg leader as a symbol of Europe's past and has argued that a reformer should take charge of the EU executive to pave the way for change.

However, on Friday Ms Merkel gave her backing to Juncker for the key post, putting her and the Prime Minister on a collision course.

Both Merkel and Juncker's parties are members of the European People's party (EPP) bloc, which still dominates the parliament and has selected him as its preferred candidate.

It comes as Iain Duncan Smith said Cameron knows he must deliver "significant return of powers" from the EU to win the support of Tory colleagues in a referendum on British membership.

The Work and Pensions Secretary said the PM was clear he could not "come back with nothing" from a mooted renegotiation after the general election.

He also lashed out at the BBC for failing to give enough prominence to Cameron's promise of an in-out vote in 2017.

Although Duncan Smith stressed he was "happy" with the premier's stance, the comments will heap pressure on Cameron to flesh out his ambitions for repatriating powers from Brussels.

Speaking to the Sunday Telegraph, Duncan Smith said: "I think you will find that the Prime Minister in due course will be a little clearer about some of the stuff that he thinks.

"The key thing is he knows very well that he can't come back with nothing.

"I don't think the Prime Minister in any way is lost on that fact that he will need to get back some substantial and significant return of powers. It is for him to deliver that."

Duncan Smith called for new rules to limit migration from the EU, and said Brussels should be stripped of control over who is entitled to state benefits in Britain.

He said he challenged Cameron face-to-face to confirm his commitment to delivering a referendum after the next election.

"I have looked him in the eye and I have asked him the simple question: you are absolutely clear this referendum is going to happen if the Conservatives are back in power and he said 'Yeah, I won't be in a government if they won't have a referendum.'"

Speaking on the by-election campaign trail in Newark, he signalled that if Cameron failed to get a good deal, he would be ready to vote to leave the EU as Britain could "prosper" outside the union.

"Let's have that referendum and when the Prime Minister goes and does his negotiations, if I am lucky enough to be in government at the time, I will do my level best to help him and support him.

"When he comes back I will make a decision on that like everybody else in Britain will do."

Duncan Smith attacked the national broadcaster for failing to cover Tory policies properly.

He warned that "most people" do not even know about the Conservatives' pledge to hold an in-out referendum on EU membership.

"The BBC has spent their whole time downgrading this whole pledge," the Cabinet minister said.

The broadcaster's executives take the view that "we've done that" and the policy does not need explaining, he said. "They don't do the British people a service at all.

"The British people use the BBC more than anything else to find out what's going on in politics. When was the last time you really heard this?"

Duncan Smith said public ignorance of the referendum plan was "the challenge to us over the next months to the election".

However, he argued Ukip's strong showing in local and European elections on May 22 was simply a "protest" which would fade away by polling day next year.

The former Tory leader also insisted the party had shown "some significant discipline when compared with the other two parties" in the wake of the results.

"I was leader once upon a time, when frankly you couldn't hold a raffle in this bloody party but you would have 50% of them against and 50% of them for," he said. "So for the Conservatives to show discipline is significant."

A BBC spokeswoman said: "The BBC has given the Conservative Party's policy on an in-out referendum on Europe extensive coverage from the moment the pledge was made, and ever since.

"We are satisfied that we have covered the EU referendum promise impartially and accurately."

Shadow foreign secretary Douglas Alexander sought to turn up the heat on Cameron by demanding he spell out his negotiation aims.

In a letter to the PM, Alexander wrote: "It is now 16 months since your Bloomberg speech about the future of Europe where you described five key principles that you said should underpin the way Europe should change: competitiveness, flexibility, power flowing back to nation states, accountability and fairness.

"At the time, there was widespread agreement in the UK that, while abstract, these five principles were indeed important ideals.

"Since then, despite repeated requests from leading members of the British business community, from within your own party and from MPs from all sides, you have failed to set out your specific reform agenda for the EU.

"The concern over your silence is widely held. Only this week, dozens of Conservative activists, MPs and senior figures from the grassroots of your party, called on you to urgently offer 'clarity' on your European reform agenda which, they point out, you have conspicuously not done to date."

Personally I don't believe Cameron would say this.....

Probably not Malena but maybe! Nigel Farage pulled a face at the choice when he was coming out of the EU meeting. He said he was a federalist, we certainly don't want larger doses of that.

What I find repulsive are the remarks our 'representatives' make on our behalf such as Duncan Smith saying;

"Ukip's strong showing in local and European elections on May 22 was simply a "protest" which would fade away by polling day next year."

How dare he deny what the elections have indicated? He is no more than a rich ignorant bigot, a proven liar about his education and a failed leader of the Tory party, a good days work would kill him.... Should do well in politics then....

Yes Malena all true. If they think we are going to come round if they are seen to be doing nothing about the situation. Then they are in for a shock at the general election. Then it will hit them where really hurts.

fuzeta wrote:Yes Malena all  true.  If they think we are going to come round if they are seen to be doing nothing about the situation. Then they are in for a shock at the general election. Then it will hit them where really hurts.

I look forward to being just one of the voters who will bring tears to their eyes...

malena stool wrote:What I find repulsive are the remarks our 'representatives' make on our behalf such as Duncan Smith saying;

"Ukip's strong showing in local and European elections on May 22 was simply a "protest" which would fade away by polling day next year."

How dare he deny what the elections have indicated? He is no more than a rich ignorant bigot, a proven liar about his education and a failed leader of the Tory party, a good days work would kill him.... Should do well in politics then....

HIS UNIVERSAL CREDIT IT SCHEME IS RUNNING INTO PROBLEMS.

Badboy wrote:

malena stool wrote:What I find repulsive are the remarks our 'representatives' make on our behalf such as Duncan Smith saying;

"Ukip's strong showing in local and European elections on May 22 was simply a "protest" which would fade away by polling day next year."

How dare he deny what the elections have indicated? He is no more than a rich ignorant bigot, a proven liar about his education and a failed leader of the Tory party, a good days work would kill him.... Should do well in politics then....

HIS UNIVERSAL CREDIT IT SCHEME IS RUNNING INTO PROBLEMS.

As long as he sees a few bob in his back pocket it's working well, Badboy....

malena stool wrote:

Badboy wrote:

malena stool wrote:What I find repulsive are the remarks our 'representatives' make on our behalf such as Duncan Smith saying;

"Ukip's strong showing in local and European elections on May 22 was simply a "protest" which would fade away by polling day next year."

How dare he deny what the elections have indicated? He is no more than a rich ignorant bigot, a proven liar about his education and a failed leader of the Tory party, a good days work would kill him.... Should do well in politics then....

HIS UNIVERSAL CREDIT IT SCHEME IS RUNNING INTO PROBLEMS.

As long as he sees a few bob in his back pocket it's working well, Badboy....

MAYBE HE TELL HIS MINIONS IN DWP NOT TO SEND LETTER ASKING ME ABOUT MY SAVINGS ETC UNLESS I REALLY HAVE FORGOTTEN TO SEND IN MY BANK STATEMENTS,I OWN NO PROPERTY BEING IN A HOUSING ASSOCIATION FLAT AND NO N&I SAVINGS,IT WOULD CEAPER TO CONTACT BY EMAIL,NOT SNAIL MAIL,WONDER IF THEY COULD WORK THAT ONE OUT,MAYBE A WRIT FOR HARASSMENT COULD SORT THEM OUT.
THEY COULD SAVE THOUSAND IF THEY HELPED ME DO A WEBSITE.

Well it looks like Cameron might have said it after all. Apparently another candidate to Junker is being considered.

Maybe Merkel is doing it for a bit of show and will go back to the original choice who knows.

fuzeta wrote:Well it looks like Cameron might have said it after all. Apparently another candidate to Junker is being considered.

Maybe Merkel is doing it for a bit of show and will go back to the original choice who knows.

Good afternoon fuzeta

The next few weeks could be very interesting. Granted that when Cameron made this pledge, he chose his words very carefully. Even so he really can not return from any renegotiation with nothing.

I think that would almost certainly mean that despite the dire warning of certain industrialists about the consequences, most people would vote to get out. After the election it all depends on how well UKIP perform, and malena stool is totally right in asking how IDS has the gall to say something like that. It basically says the electorate are sheep. to be allowed a little protest, but then meekly do what we are told.

Angela Merkel made a speech a little while back, basically telling us that the rest of Europe won't make any concessions to us. In that she may be right, in that several of them, while depending on our money would vote against any change to that. The appointment of Juncker is in any case not only a slap in the face for us, but against the electorate in Europe.

Maybe she does intend to brazen it out, pinning hopes on the electorate reversing their massive thumbs down of a few days ago.

Judging by what I have seen of her the last few days, she will not budge an inch. She must know that Cameron won 't leave and that his talk to do so is all worth nothing. Yes they want our contribution but they don't like us and have no time for us. We are a pest that they put up with because of the money.

Juncker has already said he will not grovel to us and a few other choice words. In other words s*d off. No one has asked him to grovel but he has certainly let us know what he thinks of us. Does not bode well does it?

the 3 in a boat , Britain Merkel and the Swedish PM (who is anti EU) probably wanted to thrash matters out in Private , Merkel Apparently would not budge about re-appointing Juncker but she is very powerful and can maybe persuade Juncker to give some concessions . Merkel knows there are many in Germany , especially the younger population who don't like that she has acted as a Loan provider to EU Countries who may never be able to repay..

fuzeta wrote:Judging by what I have seen of her the last few days, she will not budge an inch. She must know that Cameron won 't leave and that his talk to do so is all worth nothing. Yes they want our contribution but they don't like us and have no time for us.  We are a pest that they put up with because of the money.  

Juncker has already said he will not grovel to us and a few other choice words.  In other words s*d off.  No one has asked him to grovel but  he has certainly let us know what he thinks of us. Does not bode well does it?

Hi fuzeta

Yes, I can't argue with any of that. a very perceptive post.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-27827729#

Well it looks like it is all going as we thought. They have once again shown what they think of us, even though we contribute so much money. What will Cameron's next steps be?

fuzeta wrote:http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-27827729#

Well it looks like it is all going as we thought.   They have once again shown what they think of us, even though we contribute so much money.  What will Cameron's next steps be?

The EU must be the most undemocratic organisation that PM's of all the countries don't have the right to vote on major issues. Yet again Cameron has proved how ineffectual he is and to promise a Referendum AFTER the Election next year IF he is re-elected was a crass way of trying to secure another 5 years in Office , I wouldn't be surprised if he is ousted before the Election