LONDON, October 27 (RIA Novosti) — UK Prime Minister David Cameron promises to challenge the extra 1.7 million pound (about $2.7 million) payment the European Union has requested that the United Kingdom adds to the bloc’s annual budget.
“We [UK] have a tough fight to face in Europe… I currently consider that the United Kingdom would do better in a reformed European Union, but for these reforms to occur, it is necessary to fight. And this means battles because of the budget, because of migration. EU membership gives us access to European markets, but such things are not achieved without a fight,” Cameron told reporters in Leeds Monday.
The European Commission chief Jose Manuel Barroso, had earlier stated that the extra payment required from the United Kingdom to this year’s EU budget was in line with the rules of the union, which were approved by the member states. The contributions were calculated according to the country’s Gross National Income (GNI), based on economic growth since 1995.
On Monday, the European Commissioner for Budgets, Jacek Dominik, said at a press conference that if the United Kingdom did not make the required extra payment by December 1, a late fine would be imposed.
