PM: I won’t campaign for UK to quit EU

Prime Minister David Cameron has said he will not campaign for Britain to leave the EU in a referendum, warning that the UK would become “a sort of greater Switzerland” if it quit the 27-nation bloc.

He has indicated that he may consider calling a referendum on Europe, but only after negotiating a “new settlement” with Brussels which would see powers returned to Westminster.

He told the Daily Telegraph that quitting the EU altogether – as some of his backbenchers want – would be “a complete denial of our national interests”.

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His comments came as a business survey found that half of UK firms with a view on the country’s future in the European Union want a “looser” relationship with Brussels.

Only 12 per cent of members asked by the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) said they wanted the UK to withdraw altogether, while 9 per cent backed further integration and 26 per cent were happy with the status quo.

But the most popular option –with 47 per cent of votes – was that “a looser relationship should be negotiated” within the EU. With 6 per cent unsure, that is half of expressed opinions.

Of those that backed any sort of change, 40 per cent said they believed it should be put to a referendum within the next 12 months while another 55 per cent favoured a national poll within five years.

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Explaining why he would not vote for Britain to leave the EU, Mr Cameron said: “I think it would be bad for Britain.

“Britain’s interest – trading a vast share of our GDP – is to be in those markets.

“If your vision of Britain was that we should just withdraw and become a sort of greater Switzerland, I think that would be a complete denial of our national interests.”

Shadow foreign secretary Douglas Alexander said: “What Britain needs now is a clear strategy for Europe rather than yet more internal party manoeuvring. The more the Prime Minister says, the less clear his policy becomes.”