Britain claimed victory yesterday in its standoff with the European Union over a 2.1 billion euro ($2.7bn) budget contribution, saying it was able to reduce and delay the bill.
British Treasury chief George Osborne said after a meeting of EU finance ministers that the British “have halved the bill, we have delayed the bill, we will pay no interest on the bill.”
He said payments would be due in the second half of next year, well after general elections on May 7, when Britain’s cantankerous relationship with the EU is bound to a central theme. Friday’s decision would spread Britain’s payment out to next September, giving Cameron a breathing space of 10 months instead of barely three weeks.
Osborne said 850 million pounds ($1.36bn) would be paid “in two installments in the second half of next year.”
And he said the EU rules were changed to make sure such drastic demands would never come back. “This is far beyond what anyone expected us to achieve,” Osborne said. The EU presidency confirmed a deal, but offered no details.
