Deal done: now for the hard work

Once David Cameron had won the May 2015 general election, and announced an EU referendum before the end of 2017, he was always going to find it hard to fulfil his pledge to achieve significant reforms to the Union. The final phase of the British renegotiation proved particularly tortuous, and the package of reforms he agreed was unlikely to impress voters. In order to win the referendum vote on June 23rd 2016, he needed to make the case for the EU itself.

• Primary Source

ESO: Background information: A new settlement for the United Kingdom in the EU http://www.europeansources.info/record/european-council-brussels-18-19-february-2016-a-new-settlement-for-the-united-kingdom-in-the-eu/

ESO: Background information: European Council, Brussels 18-19 February 2016 http://www.europeansources.info/record/european-council-brussels-18-19-february-2016/

ESO: In Focus: Brexit - The United Kingdom and the European Union http://www.europeansources.info/record/brexit-the-united-kingdom-and-the-european-union/

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