07 December 2015•Update: 07 December 2015
BRUSSELS
European Council President Donald Tusk warned Monday that uncertainty over the U.K.’s future in the EU is destabilizing the region.
"Uncertainty about the future of the U.K. in the European Union is a destabilizing factor," Tusk said in a letter to member state leaders. "That is why we must find a way to answer the British concerns as quickly as possible."
He said there was no agreement among EU leaders concerning Prime Minister David Cameron’s demands to restrict in-work payments for four years.
Cameron has promised a referendum by the end of 2017 on whether Britain should remain within the EU and has set out four areas where he is seeking reforms to address the concerns of the British people.
The four areas are excluding Britain from having to bailout eurozone countries that get into trouble; cutting down on excessive regulation; giving national parliaments more power in forming EU law; and cutting welfare benefits such as in-work payments for citizens of other EU members.
Tusk said the area regarding welfare and in-work payments needed to be discussed by EU leaders when they gather in Brussels later this month.
"The fourth basket on social benefits and the free movement of persons is the most delicate and will require a substantive political debate at our December meeting," he said. "In times when geopolitics is back in Europe, we need to be united and strong. This is in our common interest and in the interest of each and every EU member state."
Tusk added: "The U.K. has played a constructive and important role in the development of the European Union and I am sure that it will continue to do so in the future."
