BRUSSELS/LONDON: British Prime Minister David Cameron will launch an assault against “business as usual” at a summit in Brussels on Tuesday, calling on fellow EU leaders to set simpler priorities that meet the concerns of frustrated voters.

After resounding victories for the far-right in Britain, France and Denmark, and a strong performance by populist or Euroskeptic groups in many other EU countries in European elections, Cameron is under pressure to shore up his position at home and deliver on long-promised changes in Europe.

In a series of phone calls in recent days, he has spoken to six EU leaders including German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Swedish Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt. He made further calls on Tuesday, one of them to Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte.

“Fellow leaders have agreed that it is an important moment for the European Council to set out its views on the future of the EU and provide clear direction of what is expected from the next European Commission,” Cameron’s spokesman said.

Cameron alienated his peers in 2011 by wielding Britain’s veto over treaty change at the height of the euro zone crisis. They simply navigated around him. He may find allies this time.






After an electoral drubbing, French President Francois Hollande said on Monday he would press for change within an EU which had become remote from its citizens and Italian premier Matteo Renzi, possibly the biggest winner in weekend EU elections, is intent on pushing a pro-growth agenda.

One of Cameron’s immediate objectives is convincing other leaders that Jean-Claude Juncker, the former prime minister of Luxembourg, is not the right person to lead the European Commission, with its sweeping legislative powers.

Juncker, a long-time advocate of a more federal Europe, has been chosen by the EU’s main center-right political group, the European People’s Party, to be their candidate for Commission President, arguably Brussels’ most powerful job.