Time for tact

Jean-Claude! I always said you'd make a great presidentTHOUGH less radical than expected, it was a tough speech. On November 28th, David Cameron announced that'if returned to power next year'he would make immigrants from other parts of the EU wait four years until they could claim in-work benefits. He also said he wanted to stop child benefit payments to migrants' children abroad and deport foreign workers who had gone six months without finding a job. Was the tough talk realistic'The relieved response from Berlin and Brussels was promising. Some Downing Street insiders had briefed in advance that the prime minister might try to cap EU immigration to Britain; a measure that would collide with Europe's freedom of movement regime (see article). After much wrangling among cabinet ministers, Mr Cameron killed the idea when he realised how strongly his European allies opposed it. The prime minister contacted Angela Merkel, the German chancellor, and Jean-Claude Juncker, the new president of the European Commission (pictured, right), to reassure them.But damage had been done. By flirting with a measure...Continue reading
Click here to read full news..