UK: "Cameron And Sarkozy In Eurozone Crisis Talks"

Prime Minister David Cameron is meeting French President Nicolas Sarkozy today to discuss the debt crisis which is crippling Europe and threatens to drag Britain back into recession.
They will meet in Paris to also talk about plans to reorganise the governance of the eurozone which will see closer cooperation between the 17-strong bloc - potentially marginalising Britain's influence in the EU.
The move will be considered by the European Council at the end of next week.
But Mr Sarkozy said last night that he and German Chancellor Angela Merkel would unveil proposals on Monday to try to lift Europe out of its debt crisis and "guarantee" its future.
Any reforms of the Maastricht Treaty rules governing the eurozone will have to be agreed by all 27 members of the EU.
"France will push with Germany for a new European treaty refounding and rethinking the organisation of Europe," Mr Sarkozy said.
"The Maastricht Treaty has revealed itself to be imperfect," he added, referring to the pact that led to the creation of the euro currency in 1999.
Mr Sarkozy and Mr Cameron have very different views about how to tackle to the crisis.
Mr Sarkozy thinks it is crucial that more control is given to Brussels over national budgets, but Mr Cameron believes the EU should have less power.
It raises the possibility of Mr Cameron using the negotiations to win repatriation of social and employment laws from Brussels to the UK.
However, it is unclear whether the UK Government may wait for future, more substantial treaty negotiations to gain the kind of concessions that the coalition is committed to and Tory MPs have been baying for.
It has been reported that the Prime Minister is more concerned about ensuring the eurozone gets its problems under control as quickly as possible.
Chancellor George Osborne warned this week that, while Britain was not yet heading for recession, further crisis in the eurozone could pull the UK economy under.
Downing Street said it was waiting to see the options paper for reform which European Council president Herman van Rompuy is drawing up for next week's gathering of EU heads.
Mr Cameron's official spokesman said: "Primarily what is being looked at here is rules for the eurozone.
"As with any negotiation in Europe we have to wait and see what is being proposed and see how we will respond.
"We will always look to further our national interest.