“I want Britain to stay in a reformed European Union. That is why I am seeking important reforms to address the concerns of the British people about the status quo,” he told a press briefing during a visit to Bucharest.
“As (EU president Donald Tusk) said earlier this week, we are making good progress, but I recognize that some areas are more difficult than others, particularly the reforms I’ve proposed on welfare,” he said.
The British leader last month formally laid out a list of demands to his EU counterparts which include a controversial bid to prevent EU migrants from claiming certain state benefits during their first four years in the country.
Tusk said Monday he expects a deal at a summit in February to keep Britain in the bloc, despite a lack of consensus over the key demand on migrant benefits.
In a letter to European Union leaders, Tusk warned that uncertainty over a potential “Brexit” was destabilizing the 28-nation bloc.
Cameron, who has promised to hold a referendum on Britain’s EU membership by the end of 2017, had hoped to get a deal by a summit later this month but has now acknowledged that will not happen.
On Wednesday he said: “I support the principle of free movement, to work, it’s a basic treaty right and a key part of the single market.”
He added however: “It was never envisaged that free movement would trigger quite such vast numbers of people moving across our continent.”
A net migration rate in Britain of “well over 300,000 a year... is not sustainable,” he said. AFP reported.
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