–Adds Comments By German Chancellor Merkel To Story Sent At 09:55 GMT
BERLIN (MNI) – Britain’s Europe minister, David Lidington, has
reaffirmed his government’s strict opposition to real term increases in
the EU budget, but has proposed shortening the duration for the next
financial period.
“We want to freeze the budget, and it will stay this way,”
Lidington told the German weekly Die Zeit in an interview to be
published Thursday.
The minister said Britain was willing to discuss, though,
shortening the next budget period to three or five years from seven
years.
EU heads of states and governments are to meet on November 22-23 in
Brussels to decide on the 2014-2020 budget. British Prime Minister David
Cameron has threatened to veto any increase in the EU budget.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel told journalists on Wednesday that
it will be “very, very difficult” to reach an agreement on the EU budget
at next week’s summit. Still, “I’m going to Brussels next week with the
clear aim that we’ll do our best to achieve an agreement,” she vowed.
–Berlin bureau: +49-30-22 62 05 80; email: twidder@mni-news.com
[TOPICS: M$X$$$,MGX$$$,M$$CR$,M$B$$$,M$G$$$]
