Free Republic

Britain is already a lame duck within the EU’s internal governing structure and is losing influence “by the day” in Brussels, even before David Cameron holds a referendum on withdrawal. This self-isolation has upset the European balance of power in profound ways, leading ineluctably to German hegemony and a unipolar system centered on Berlin. […] Such is the verdict of Roman Prodi, the former Italian premier and ex-president of the European Commission. […] “Germany is exercising an almost solitary power. The new presidents of the Commission and the Council are men who rotate around Germany’s orbit, and above all there...

David Cameron denies claims America trade deal will allow US firms to privatise our NHS The deal could generate £10billion a year but unions suggest it could allow US medical giants to run health services in Europe, reports Jason Beattie in Brisbane

The “root cause” of terrorism is not poverty, marginalization or Western nations’ foreign policy, British Prime Minister David Cameron said Friday, but an “extremist narrative” that must be confronted. Addressing the Australian federal parliament in Canberra, Cameron announced new measures that are being put in place in Britain to prevent jihadists from returning to the country from Middle East conflict zones and to stop suspected foreign fighters from leaving in the first place. He contested the argument that issues like poverty and deprivation, or unhappiness with foreign policy, are fueling Islamist terrorism. …

Germany 'Would Accept UK Exit From EU' To Protect Migration Rules Angela Merkel is reported to have told David Cameron that she will not negotiate on EU migration Chancellor Angela Merkel would rather see the UK exit from the European Union than compromise over the principle of free movement of workers, according to the German magazine Der Spiegel. Mrs Merkel is alleged to fear that the UK is approaching a "point of no return". Downing Street would not comment on the reports. Mr Cameron wants to renegotiate the terms of the UK's continued membership before holding an in-out referendum. The...

UKIP is on course to crush the Conservatives in the Rochester and Strood by-election, according to a new poll last night. The Survation poll for the Unite trade union gave Ukip candidate Mark Reckless a 15-point lead over his former party. The lead has widened by six points since an identical poll last month, and suggests that a huge Tory effort to hold the seat is failing to gain traction. The poll puts support for Ukip on 48 per cent, with the Conservatives on 33, Labour, who came second in 2010, on 16 per cent, the Greens on two percent...

Convicted terrorists will be banned from running charities under a new law to stop donations being funneled to extremist groups, David Cameron has said. The Prime Minister said that the Government will “confront the menace of extremism” by ensuring that the Charity Commission is given new powers to prevent dangerous criminals misusing money that is donated to charities. Officials have expressed concerns that money donated to charities has been funding extremist groups in countries like Syria and Iraq. Previously, convicted terrorists and pedophiles have still been able to act as charity trustees in the UK. As part of the new...

CAIRO (AP) — The Islamic State extremists who have beheaded another Western hostage are deaf to reason and must be destroyed, British Prime Minister David Cameron said Saturday as Muslims worldwide were urged to pray for the victim on one of Islam’s holiest days. .....

LONDON (AFP) — British Prime Minister David Cameron will hold talks on Wednesday with Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani over unrest in Iraq and Syria, officials said, announcing the first meeting between the countries’ leaders since the 1979 Islamic Revolution. The talks will occur on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York. They come as Western powers seek to build support for the fight against the Islamic State (IS) jihadist group, which holds swaths of territory in Iraq and Syria and which has beheaded two US journalists and a British aid worker. Britain has had tense ties with...

Conservative MP Mark Reckless has announced that he is joining UKIP. The Rochester and Strood MP told the UKIP conference, in Doncaster, that he has resigned as an MP, triggering a by-election in the constituency. Delegates started to spontaneously chant "UKIP, UKIP" when Mr Reckless announced his decision to defect, which he said was not easy. The move comes just weeks after Clacton MP Douglas Carswell defected from the Conservatives to join UKIP.

Parliament is to be recalled on Friday to discuss the UK's possible involvement in air strikes against Islamic State (IS) in Iraq. Prime Minister David Cameron said MPs should respond to the Iraqi government's request for help. He added that the UK "should not turn away from what needs to be done". The Liberal Democrats are backing air strikes in Iraq and Labour leader Ed Miliband has confirmed his support, saying the UK cannot "opt out". Meanwhile, the Foreign Office has said it is "aware" of reports that a British national has died in Syria, but it has "no further...

Like Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have their own regional parliaments... However, England's lack of a similar legislative body has led to a messy situation where Scottish lawmakers can vote on issues that only affect England at the U.K.-wide Westminster parliament ... Just as Scotland will vote separately…on their issues of tax, spending and welfare, so too England, as well as Wales and Northern Ireland, should be able to vote on these issues

"I have long believed that a crucial part missing from this national discussion is England. "We have heard the voice of Scotland - and now the millions of voices of England must also be heard. "The question of English votes for English laws - the so-called West Lothian question -requires a decisive answer. "So, just as Scotland will vote separately in the Scottish Parliament on their issues of tax, spending and welfare so too England, as well as Wales and Northern Ireland, should be able to vote on these issues and all this must take place in tandem with, and...

President Barack Obama and British Prime Minister David Cameron say they will “not be cowed” by the Islamic militants who have killed two American journalists. […] Obama and Cameron appear to suggest that NATO should play a role in containing the militants, but were not specific in what action they would seek from the alliance. …

Can the UK protect itself from the danger presented by its citizens returning after fighting for ISIS — perhaps to continue the war at home? Prime Minister David Cameron believes that British security forces have the authority to take temporary steps to block their return, but wants Parliament to pass a law granting more permanent power to impose a de facto exile on British nationals who fight for ISIS and other terror groups:CLICK ABOVE LINK FOR THE VIDEO British Prime Minister David Cameron announced Monday temporary enhanced powers for police designed to keep Islamist extremists in Britain from traveling...

David Cameron has vowed to “turn the ratchet” on Vladimir Putin, as he warned Western sanctions would “permanently” damage the Russian economy. Moscow banks are running short of funding as investors pull capital out the country, while the rouble and the Russian stock market are falling, the Prime Minister said. He was speaking ahead of a Nato summit in Wales which will discuss Ukrainian membership of the military alliance. Addressing the Commons, the Prime Minister said Britain would face the “grave danger” posed by Russian aggression in eastern Ukraine with “reliance and resolve”. On Saturday, European leaders gave Russia a...

British Prime Minister David Cameron announced Friday during a pointed press conference that U.K. authorities will soon begin revoking the passports of citizens traveling to Syria. The move is part of a series of new security measures being taken by the country after raising the terror threat level to "severe" as Cameron admitted the fight to end Islamist extremism may take decades, or even generations. "We are in the middle of a generational struggle against a poisonous & extremist ideology," Cameron declared. British authorities raised the terror threat level Friday to one below "critical," the highest alert, because it is...

Unlike someone we know, it sounds like United Kingdom Prime Minister David Cameron has a strategy for defeating Islamic extremists. At a press conference today on the growing threat of ISIS, Cameron offered a passionate speech with plans to disrupt the terror group. Just a glimpse at his comments proves he knows exactly who we’re dealing with: “The threat we face today comes from the poisonous narrative of Islamist extremism.” “The terrorist threat was not created by the Iraq war ten years ago. It existed even before the horrific attacks on 9/11."  “This threat cannot be solved simply by dealing with...

WASHINGTON - There can be only one response to the barbaric beheading of American journalist James Foley by Islamic State terrorists. We must hunt them down and kill them. President Obama said as much in his brief remarks in the wake of the terrorists' grisly video that showed Foley's execution by a masked jihadist who spoke with a British accent and is believed to be a British citizen. The United States will "do what we must to protect our people," Obama said Wednesday. "We will be vigilant and we will be relentless" in bringing them to justice. No sooner had...

If Hamas attacks Israel with rocket fire and Israel retaliates, the British government has threatened to suspend some arms exports to Israel. This is, as Yuval Steinitz points out here, tantamount to inviting Hamas to launch new jihad attacks against Israel, knowing that the response from the West will be more excoriation of Israel, not resistance to jihad terror. “UK Govt ‘Encouraging Hamas To Fire At Israel,’” by Tom Rayner, Sky News, August 12, 2014 (thanks to Hiro): An Israeli cabinet minister has accused the UK government of ‘encouraging’ Hamas to re-start rocket fire from Gaza, following a decision to...

Britain may come away empty-handed when European Union leaders carve up a package of top EU jobs next week, due to its fierce opposition to Jean-Claude Juncker’s appointment as the next European Commission president. Prime Minister David Cameron angered his peers in June by breaking with a tradition of taking decisions by consensus and forcing them to vote on whether Juncker should head the EU executive. Only Britain and Hungary voted “no”. Cameron publicly branded Juncker a “career insider of Brussels” and said his selection was a bad day for Europe. “After the mess at the last summit, many leaders...