British Prime Minister David Cameron did not mince his words on Monday when he said that the United Kingdom is demanding a more flexible Europe, and is set to give his proposals to European Council President Donald Tusk today, before the latter arrives in Malta for the Valletta summit.
Malta has long pushed the agenda when it comes to the migration phenomenon. Back in the day, in hindsight, the new kids on the block within the European Union and perhaps, while still seeking to improve Malta’s lot, we were too soft.
Roll on a few years and the Gonzi administration secured the ‘voluntary burden sharing’ concept, which in reality, never took off. Then came the Muscat administration and the infamous pushback threats and the ‘stamp our feet’ episode. At the time, many thought that Dr Muscat’s stance smacked of a tantrum – and perhaps it was. Roll on another few years and we experienced the Lampedusa tragedy and finally the EU woke from its slumber and pledged to tackle the situation after an extraordinary summit in Brussels.
Just a few weeks later, the original pledges for material assets never materialised, Operation Triton was only slightly bolstered and everything went back to normal. Then, the bolt finally hit home. We are, of course, talking about the image of the young Kurdish boy Aylan Kurdi, who washed up ashore on a Greek island after having drowned. That, coupled with the huge tidal wave migrants who gained access to Europe through the Balkan corridor finally made EU nations recognise the gravity of the situation.
Fast forward to today, and we are on the eve of what is supposed to be a historic summit to forge a common way forward in the face of such human tragedy. But it seems that as with every summit, there will be a sideshow and that is likely to be Mr Cameron’s mounting rhetoric about the UK’s relationship with the EU.
Mr Cameron said that he is “deadly serious” about the UK leaving the EU if things do not change. He said that he wants a looser and more competitive EU that protects countries that do not form part of the eurozone.
No doubt, Mr Tusk will have read Mr Cameron’s proposals before he arrives in Malta to address parliament today, and he may even make reference to what the UK has outlined. Cameron has stuck to his guns and has pledged to hold a referendum on the issue of EU membership by the end of 2017. Many thought that he was posturing, when he first made the announcement, but it is becoming abundantly clear that he is not. The UK is the biggest financial centre in Europe, if not the world and it has clout in terms of policy, economy, finance and, though not as one mighty as it was, it’s military capabilities.
Some of Mr Cameron’s proposals are also likely to be about migration, in terms of controlling numbers, controlling benefit claims and more. Time will tell, no doubt we will find out more in the coming days.