After two days of negotiation with European Union leaders, United Kingdom Prime Minister David Cameron on Friday said the EU has agreed keep Britain in the 28-nation bloc with "special status", reported Reuters. The legally binding decision granted Britain an explicit exemption from EU's founding goal of "ever closer union", offered concessions on the welfare rights of migrant workers and safeguards for the City of London financial centre. The PM said that he will present the agreement to his cabinet on Saturday.
Cameron was in Belgium's Brussels for two days to attend a summit with his EU counterparts to discuss a range of issues. The Washington Post reported that the British PM sought limits on benefits to EU migrants in Britain, cuts to red rape, more leeway for national governments to push back on EU legislation, and more protection for the countries of the union that, like Britain, do not use the Euro. "There will be tough new restrictions on access to our welfare system for EU migrants. No more something for nothing. Britain will never join the Euro, and we've secured vital protections for our economy and a full say over the rules of the free trade single market while remaining outside the Euro," Cameron said after the meeting.
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