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Britain | |||
George Osborne to the EU: Change or Britain will leave | |||
2013-01-12 | |||
George Osborne has issued an ultimatum to the European Union, saying it "must change" in order to avoid a British exit.
The Chancellor insisted that he wants Britain to remain "an active part of a reformed EU". A Treasury aide insisted that Mr Osborne's comments were fully consistent with the Government's position that the EU needs to change "and indeed is changing". Douglas Alexander, Labour's Shadow Foreign Secretary, said Mr Osborne's comments were designed to appease Conservative backbenchers.
He said it was "deeply unhelpful" and welcomed the intervention by Philip Gordon, the US assistant secretary responsible for European affairs, who expressed concern about the consequences of Britain leaving the EU. Nick Clegg this week said the Prime Minister is risking the "livelihood and safety" of millions of British people by raising questions about Britain's EU membership. The Deputy Prime Minister said that "playing politics" with EU membership could jeopardise British jobs and hamper international police operations.
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Posted by:lotp |