Isolation from EU is bad for Britain: deputy PM

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Isolation from EU is bad for Britain: deputy PM

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British Deputy Prime says he disagrees with PMs stance on EU treaty.

13 December,2011 01:26 pm

British Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg defended his absence in the House of Commons as Prime Minster David Cameron delivered a statement on the UKs decision to veto a EU treaty in Brussels amid a global financial crisis.Political aftershocks from Fridays historic rift between Britain and the rest of the 27-nation bloc continued to shake Europe, with Prime Minister David Cameron facing tension in his coalition and doubts in the business community.Cameron was given a heros welcome by Eurosceptics in his Conservative party but faced a backlash from his Liberal Democrat coalition allies after he wielded a veto that has cast Britain adrift from its continental partners.Clegg who was conspicuously absent during Camerons address at the weekly meeting defended his decision not to sit next to the Prime Minister in the House of Commons, saying it would have been a distraction.I dont think people care too much who sits where in the House of Commons. It would have been a distraction if I was there, he said in an interview on Monday. I have made views known about Britains isolation at the summit last week.Cameron insisted Britain remains a full member of the EU and that events in summit did not change the countrys position.Clegg said the UKs isolation from Europe was bad for Britain and would diminish its global influence, affecting jobs and business.The Prime Minister and I clearly do not agree on the outcome of the summit last week. I made it very clear that I think isolation in Europe, when we are one against 26 is potentially a bad thing for jobs, bad thing for growth and and a bad thing for the livelihoods of millions of people in this country, said Clegg.The Deputy Prime Minister said he would now work to re-engage with the EU and ensure Britain had a voice in the heart of Europe.Im not here to defend the European Union in of itself. I am here to defend the jobs and livelihoods of millions of people in this country. That is what I care about and is why I think what we need to do now is build bridges, re-engage and make sure the British voice is heard loud and clear in the heart of Europe.In Brussels, officials were groping for a strong legal basis for the planned fiscal compact, with Britain arguing that theeuro zone cannot use the EU treaty institutions - the European Commission and the European Court of Justice.