EVEN FOR THE leader of an island nation, the isolation from Europe that David Cameron appears to be risking seems extraordinary. In the past few days, the British Prime Minister has been derided in news reports and commentaries for his veto of a European Union treaty that could help save the eurozone.

He might well have been trying to ensure that the new compact treaty, aimed at achieving deeper fiscal unity among its members through greater EU control over the national budgets of the 17 eurozone countries and tighter financial regulation in all EU nations, would not adversely affect business in the City of London. Yet, with the UK now left standing alone after 26 of the 27 EU nations agreed to pursue the initiative, Ca meron is being accused of having unnecessarily driven a wedge between the country and a major trading partner at its doorstep at a crucial moment in history.

Cameron’s veto decision has also infuriated pro-European Brits such as his Deputy PM, Nick Clegg, and other leaders of the Liberal Democrat party, causing political dissent that could threaten the stability of his coalition government. Many are worried about the impact of the UK’s isolation within the EU bloc as “one against 26”. In two-speed Europe, the Guardian columnist Jonathan Freedland says the UK is in a slow lane of one.

 

There are worries that strained relations with Europe resulting from Dec 9’s events may sideline the UK, one of 10 non-euro nations in the EU, and put in jeopardy its automatic right of access to the single EU market. By saying no to the proposed treaty, the UK will also have little say in the shaping of future European economic policy that will affect its own economy.

 

The idea of the UK’s losing its influence at the “top table in Europe” has fuelled fears about its becoming a second-class member of the EU. This, in turn, may affect its relationship with the US; commentators say that Washington values the UK’s leading role in the EU and its ability to assert influence in Brussels. Reuters’ Hugo Dixon writes in the Breaking Views column that persuading foreign businesses to base themselves in the UK will be a challenge if the nation had only second-class access to the single market.