Agreement on what a re-negotiated membership status for Britain in the European Union (EU) will look like failed to materialize at talks between European Council president Donald Tusk and British Prime Minister David Cameron at 10 Downing Street on Sunday night. Mr. Tusk’s terse “no deal” to journalists as he left the Prime Minister’s residence on Sunday night without an agreement in hand suggested the impasse the issue is stuck at.
Negotiations on an acceptable draft text will however continue over the next 24 hours.
Hoped to put draft for debate
Mr. Tusk hoped to put up the draft for discussion before the 27 EU heads in Brussels on Monday. A summit on Brexit is scheduled for February 18 and 19.
The looming humanitarian crisis as refugees enter in the thousands into Europe is the context and backdrop to the stalled negotiations.
Sticking point
The sticking point in the discussions is Britain’s demand that it be allowed to restrict state benefits to EU migrants for the next seven years. In other words, any migrant arriving in Britain over the next seven years will have to wait for a period of four years before they become eligible for any in-work government benefits that British citizens enjoy.
With migration levels into Europe from Syria and other countries in the Middle-East and West Asia showing no signs of letting up – a million refugees are expected to reach Europe this year -- European leaders want Britain to step forward and commit to taking in a larger share of migrants.
4,000 refugees annually for next 5 years
So far Mr. Cameron has pledged to take in 4,000 Syrian refugees every year over the next five years, an offer that British opposition parties, charities and even the Church of England have bitterly criticised.
On Monday, 120 leading economists have added their voice to the demand for a more generous refugee policy. In an open letter to Mr. Cameron, the academics have said that the current policy is “morally unacceptable.” A million refugees are expected to reach Europe’s door this year.
‘They are entitled to it’
“Refugees should be taken in because they are morally and legally entitled to international protection, not because of the economic advantages they may bring,” the letter notes, adding “Nonetheless, it is important to note that the economic contribution of refugees and their descendants to the U.K. has been high.”
To Mr. Cameron’s demands, the European Commission has instead offered the option of an ‘emergency brake’ -- conceived as a ban on benefits that can be activated only if the country can prove that its public services are under unsustainable pressure. This cannot be invoked by the country concerned but has to be voted on by the EU.
Mr. Cameron, whose promise of an in-out referendum on Britain’s membership of the EU may take place as early as June this year, has argued that the brake should be effected immediately after the referendum and for a period of seven years.
Cameron wants this in the draft
The seven-year emergency brake is the most ambitious of Mr. Cameron’s demands that he would like to see incorporated into the draft. Additionally, Mr. Cameron’s basket of demands includes a strengthening of national institutions like parliament vis-à-vis the EU legislative institutions; the protection of London City as a financial hub from policies that favour Euro-zone economies; and the elimination of “unnecessary legislation” that hinders economic growth.
