This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-34664382

The article has changed 6 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 2 Version 3
EU referendum: 'UK yet to reveal reform details' EU referendum: David Cameron to 'quicken pace' of talks
(about 5 hours later)
Two European leaders have told the BBC that the UK is yet to reveal any details about what it wants to achieve in a renegotiation with the EU. David Cameron has said "now the pace will quicken" in his efforts to get a new deal for the UK in Brussels ahead of an in/out referendum.
Estonia and Finland's leaders say David Cameron has so far failed to provide concrete proposals. The prime minister denied failing to be clear about what he wants, saying talks with Northern European leaders in Iceland had "gone well".
But Mr Cameron, who is in Iceland for a meeting of northern European leaders, said discussions were "going well". He said would be revealing full details of his demands early next month.
The prime minister wants to renegotiate the UK's relationship with the EU ahead of an in/out referendum on membership. Estonia and Finland's leaders say Mr Cameron has so far failed to provide concrete proposals.
Finnish Prime Minister Juha Sipila and Estonian Prime Minister Taavi Roivas spoke to BBC political editor Laura Kuenssberg in Reykjavik. Cameron's demands
Mr Roivas said they had talked about "directions" with the UK but are yet to focus on detail. Mr Cameron has yet to show his hand publicly but bowed to pressure from other EU leaders earlier this month by pledging to set out full details of his renegotiation demands in a letter to European Council President Donald Tusk in early November.
'Norway option' The comments from the Finnish and Estonian leaders suggest that he is not saying much more in private.
Mr Sipila said: "When you have a concrete proposal I think that Finland and other Nordic countries, we are very open to finding a solution for that." From what Mr Cameron has said in speeches and articles, and the Conservative manifesto, we know he wants:
He also wants to free business from what he sees as red tape and "excessive interference" from Brussels and provide access to new markets through "turbo charging" free trade deals with America and Asia
What the PM has been saying in Iceland
Speaking to reporters at the end of the meeting, Mr Cameron said: "We had excellent discussion last night, obviously we were covering other subjects like Syria and refugees and Ukraine but we also discussed the British renegotiation and I would argue it is going well."
He said the pace of the renegotiation would now "quicken," when he writes his letter to Donald Tusk, "at the beginning of November".
Asked whether Britain was better off out or in the EU, he said: "There's a debate about Britain's membership of the European Union, that's why we're having a referendum and people will be able to listen to all of the advice and all of the positions that they hear before they make up their mind.
"My job as prime minister is to get the best deal for Britain in Europe, to make sure we have the best of both worlds.
"And so that's what I'm doing by setting out very clearly the things that needs to change; on sovereignty, on competitiveness, on fairness between Euro ins and out, on migration and welfare - I've been very consistent. "
What other leaders have been saying about him
Estonian Prime Minister Taavi Roivas told BBC political editor Laura Kuenssberg he had talked about "directions" with the UK but are yet to focus on detail.
Finnish Prime Minister Juha Sipila said: "When you have a concrete proposal I think that Finland and other Nordic countries, we are very open to finding a solution for that."
Both countries want the UK to stay in the EU.Both countries want the UK to stay in the EU.
But Europe minister David Lidington said that other governments were "pretty clear" about what reforms the UK wants. Iceland trip focuses attention on Britain's post-EU options
He rejected criticism that the UK has been ambiguous and failed to put detail on the changes it wants in the run up to the EU referendum, which will be held by the end of 2017. If Britain left the EU, it would have to negotiate a trade deal with the EU and other major trading blocs. Out campaigners say Britain could strike its own deal, tailored to the needs of the country.
Mr Cameron bowed to pressure from other EU leaders earlier this month and said he would set out full details of his demands in a letter to European Council President Donald Tusk, which will be published shortly. There are a number of precedents:
After arriving in Iceland on Wednesday, Mr Cameron stressed that he ruled nothing out if he did not get what he wanted from the renegotiations - including recommending leaving the EU when Britain holds an in/out referendum. The Norwegian model: Britain leaves the EU and joins the European Economic Area, giving it access to the single market, with the exception of some financial services, but freeing it from EU rules on agriculture, fisheries, justice and home affairs
But he also took on one of the arguments for leaving the EU, which he said was being advanced by some Eurosceptics, that Britain could emulate Norway, which is outside the EU but is part of the European Economic Area, which allows it to trade in the single market. The Swiss model: Britain emulates Switzerland, which is not a member of the EU but negotiates trade treaties on a sector-by-sector basis
'British deal' The Turkish model: The UK could enter into a customs union with the EU, allowing access to the free market in manufactured goods but not financial services
He said he wanted the British people to understand what the so-called "Norway option" involved, arguing that "while they pay, they don't have a say - they don't have a seat around the table". Alternatively, the UK could seek to negotiate a comprehensive Free Trade Agreement with the EU, similar to the Swiss model but with better access for financial services and more say over how rules and standards are implemented.
UKIP leader Nigel Farage has pointed to Norway and Iceland as examples of countries that have thrived outside the EU. The UK could make a clean break with the EU, relying on its membership of the World Trade Organisation as a basis for trade.
Writing in the Daily Telegraph, he said there was "great irony that the prime minister has gone to make the case for the European Union in Reykjavik, the capital of a country that has benefited so immensely from being outside of the EU". Associate membership floated
When the referendum is held (it could happen any time up to the end of 2017) David Cameron is expected to argue for Britain to remain a member of the EU under the different membership terms agreed in the renegotiations that are currently under way.
The Sun newspaper floated the idea of "associate membership" of the EU, which would formalise the "two speed" Europe that is already taking shape. Foreign secretary Philip Hammond has run this past senior European politicians as his favoured option, according to the BBC's Mark Mardell.
Farage hits back
UKIP leader Nigel Farage has responded to Mr Cameron's claim that Norway and Iceland were not models the UK should follow - saying both have thrived outside the EU.
Writing in the Daily Telegraph, Mr Farage said there was "great irony that the prime minister has gone to make the case for the European Union in Reykjavik, the capital of a country that has benefited so immensely from being outside of the EU".
But the UKIP leader added: "I don't want a Norwegian deal. Or an Icelandic one for that matter."But the UKIP leader added: "I don't want a Norwegian deal. Or an Icelandic one for that matter."
Instead he wanted "a new British deal once we leave the EU, one that suits the needs of our own country".Instead he wanted "a new British deal once we leave the EU, one that suits the needs of our own country".
Mr Cameron is expected to have talks with the leaders of both Iceland and Norway at the Northern Future Forum, a grouping which also includes EU members Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Latvia, Lithuania and Sweden. America not keen on Brexit
US Trade Representative Michael Froman said his country was "not in the market" for Free Trade Agreements with individual countries.
He told Reuters Britain would face the same tariffs and trade barriers as other countries outside the US free trade network, which would mean British exports would cost more.
"We have no FTA with the UK so they would be subject to the same tariffs - and other trade-related measures - as China, or Brazil or India," he said.
He added: "I think it's absolutely clear that Britain has a greater voice at the trade table being part of the EU, being part of a larger economic entity."
Clegg wades into the debate
Ex-Lib Dem leader Nick Clegg has said "any of the options if we leave the European Union are worse than being a full member of the single market" because they would involve a "significant loss of control".
The former deputy prime minister said Norway had a "fax democracy", having to transpose "letter for letter into Norwegian" instructions sent from a Brussels fax machine.
He told BBC Radio 4's Today programme all countries with a semi-detached relationship with the EU, such as Iceland, Switzerland and Lichtenstein, faced similar problems.
The fear factor?
Kate Hoey, co-chair of the Labour Leave campaign, told Today: "I think Nick Clegg - and indeed, I'm sorry to say, the prime minister - seems to be trying to introduce an element of fear into this whole debate.
"Are we really saying that Germany and other EU countries who rely on selling things to us are going to stop selling things to us?
"We are big enough and strong enough to be able to negotiate those terms without having to be under the protection and under the law of the EU."
The Labour MP for Vauxhall added: "The reality is that no-one on the sceptic side has said that they want the Norwegian option. We are all individual countries and we've all got our own interests."