Britain Stands Alone After EU Veto

If pushing away from the European Union was British Prime Minister David Cameron’s goal in making the U.K. the only nation in the region to veto a proposal to renegotiate the EU treaty, he got what he wanted Friday. His move drew praise from conservatives concerned about Britain conceding sovereignty but raised some major concerns among his opponents. –KA

The New York Times:

Prime Minister David Cameron’s fateful decision to veto the idea of renegotiating the European Union treaty on Friday has left Britain as isolated as it has ever been in postwar Europe and effectively left out of future European decisions.

In marathon negotiations, European leaders agreed early Friday on a package of measures that would enforce greater fiscal discipline among member countries but at the expense of ceding some sovereignty over financial matters. They had hoped to gain approval from all 27 members of the European Union but after Mr. Cameron’s veto, had to restrict the agreement to the 17 members of the euro zone.

Mr. Cameron was asking for an exemption for Britain’s vital financial services industry from future regulations that might hurt its competitiveness. After he was rebuffed, he said he had no choice but to exercise his veto. Given the virulent anti-European mood in his Conservative Party back home, many here seemed to agree.

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