Region: Non-euro states at odds over UK stance

Since the European sovereign debt crisis forced countries in the eurozone to deepen economic and fiscal integration between them, European Union member states outside the single currency bloc have routinely expressed concerns about a "two-tier" Europe. UK Prime Minister David Cameron's announced referendum on British EU membership now threatens to divide the non-euro states within.

In a speech Jan. 23, Cameron promised the British public "a clear choice" on their future relations with the rest of Europe. After the next election, scheduled for 2015, they will have their say in a referendum, provided Cameron's Conservative Party wins the election.

Most eurozone governments were far from enthusiastic. The French foreign minister, Laurent Fabius, said he would "roll out the red carpet" for the United Kingdom if it decided to leave. If the island nation pulled out of Europe, it would rob the Germans of an important ally in their push for further liberalization of the single market - something of which the French are particularly wary.

The Dutch and Germans, for that very reason, seemed more disappointed than upset. "The UK outside the EU would be an island somewhere in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean between the U.S. and Europe. It would not be connected with any of those two," said Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte, although members of his liberal party were more sympathetic, saying they "welcomed the debate" about the future composition of the EU.

Outside the eurozone, Cameron's plans weren't necessarily welcomed, either, even if those states tend to share his skepticism of European centralization without their consent. Danish Prime Minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt told Die Presse in an interview published Jan 28, "We serve Danish interests best if we stay as close to the core as possible." She added, "The EU is not stronger if each country can tailor its membership."

Cameron seeks a renegotiation of UK membership terms that would allow it to opt out of certain integration schemes, such as the planned European banking union or common immigration laws.

Die Presse also cited an opinion poll that showed 21 percent of Danes believe their country would be better off outside the EU, compared with 54 percent of Britons.

In neighboring Sweden, the reaction to Cameron's speech was markedly different. "Perhaps this will stop those in Europe who want more and more centralization," suggested Prime Minister John Fredrik Reinfeldt, a centrist conservative like Cameron, in an interview with the German Handelsblatt Jan. 27.

Reinfeldt criticized plans for an ever-closer union in Europe. "The idea that we give new powers to Brussels and the European Commission then tells us what we can and cannot do, we categorically reject," he said. Sweden might be "willing to take such measures on a voluntary basis," like strengthening fiscal consolidation and harmonizing labor laws and tax rates with other European states, but it rejects a top-down enforcement of such integration.

Stockholm previously rejected plans for the pooling of sovereign debt in the form of eurobonds and, along with the Czech Republic and the United Kingdom last December, refused to enter a European banking union.

The Czechs, having elected the pro-European former left-wing prime minister Miloš Zeman to the presidency Jan. 26, may be more agreeable to European integration schemes. One of the country's right-wing coalition parties wants to join last year's "fiscal compact" after all, which enforces European budget law. Prime Minister Petr Nečas remains skeptical yet confident that it won't split his coalition. He intends to call a referendum as well on whether the country should join the euro and says he shares Cameron's desire for a "more flexible, more open" Europe.

The Czechs will likely realize, however, that if Cameron makes good on his threat and does lead the United Kingdom out of the EU, they will be in a weaker position to demand such a "more flexible, more open" union.

Sweden's Reinfeldt made his concerns explicit when he told Handelsblatt, "London is one of our key allies on the issue of developing the internal market for Europe's digital agenda and more free trade." Without it, the "northern" states may find France and the Mediterranean bloc are able to thwart such proposals and able to sustain protectionist policies that undermine competition in agriculture and service industries.

Nick Ottens can be reached at
news@praguepost.com