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"No!"


The UK gives the bird to the European Union:

WE JOURNALISTS are probably too bleary-eyed after a sleepless night to understand the full significance of what has just happened in Brussels. What is clear is that after a long, hard and rancorous negotiation, at about 5am this morning the European Union split in a fundamental way . . .

For Britain the benefit of the bargain in Brussels is far from clear. It took a good half-hour after the end of Mr Sarkozy's appearance for Mr Cameron to emerge and explain his action. The prime minister claimed he had taken a “tough decision but the right one” for British interests—particularly for its financial-services industry. In return for his agreement to change the EU treaties, Mr Cameron had wanted a number of safeguards for Britain. When he did not get them, he used his veto.

After much studied vagueness on his part about Britain's objectives, Mr Cameron's demand came down to a protocol that would ensure Britain would be given a veto on financial-services regulation.

Cameron has chosen the bankers over the common good in Europe. Doesn't surprise me.


Sean Paul Kelley December 9, 2011 - 8:24am
Sean Paul Kelley's diary | printer friendly version | digg
( categories: European Union | Global Financial Crisis | Neoliberalism | The Markets )

Nobody knows what the best course of action is...

Cameron may have made the right choice for Britain. Only the future will tell. Staying out of the Euro might not be a bad idea, at least until things get sorted out. The way fiscal and social policies etc in Italy and similar nations are being interfered with by other nations (all non elected entities) because of speculative forces enabled by the common currency is quite disturbing...

creativelcro December 9, 2011 - 11:36am
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To be fair,

the agreement that Merkel and Sarkozy are hammering out is not for the common good of Europe either. It appears to be a recipe for economic stagnation and anti-democratic control over the continent. They're still all about budget discipline and austerity, and these measures appear to be enforced by a central authority that is not popularly elected.

Britain's just deciding that it wants to stagnate its own way, separate from the EU. Europe is slowly strangling itself and England just wants its own rope.

Bolo December 9, 2011 - 11:49am
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Agreed. Right decision for the wrong reasons.

The new agreement is just a suicide pact. All it is about is committing to more and more austerity. These fucking "technocrats" are just middle brow bankers acting in nobody's interests but their own. Someone needs to tell Ireland and Spain "You in danger, girl! Ditch the Euro!" If I lived there I would take every euro out of the bank and keep it in cash, and then demand a sovereign currency for my country.

maqmigh December 10, 2011 - 2:48am
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I love it. As the French

I love it. As the French like to say, "We'll have a long and thoughtful process where we consider all the angles and make the exact wrong decision. Britain will make a snap decision based on little information or public discussion and it is eventually proven exactly correct."

Having been in and out of the UK during the Euro formation (and back once last year), they never bought in. Now the Euro union needs them more than they need the union. The most obvious example is the Brits never stopped printing pounds sterling, they never gave up their own currency. Not that the UK won't take a big hit if the Euro dissolves, but they would also be the king of the mudpile that will be Europe.

They'll either get some of their concessions, or they will burn this house to the ground IMHO.

zot23 December 9, 2011 - 12:06pm
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