THE EU s sluggish coronavirus vaccine programme is facing another setback after AstraZeneca announced a fresh cut in the number of jabs it will deliver this spring.
He said: “The lefties in the EU are in a hurry because they know Europe is changing. If you see the attitude of the Dutch, Austrians and Finnish, they are slowly but surely adopting a position inside the European Union that is very similar to the position the UK has had in the last 10 years before they quit.
“If things don t change, if the majority doesn t get a little bit of sense for the real feelings of the people in Europe, I think we will have more exits and not very far in time.
“We will have more exits and everybody will have to reconsider.
Link copied
European Union facing internal battle over vaccines says MEP Sign up to receive our rundown of the day s top stories direct to your inbox
SUBSCRIBE Invalid email
When you subscribe we will use the information you provide to send you these newsletters. Sometimes they ll include recommendations for other related newsletters or services we offer. Our Privacy Notice explains more about how we use your data, and your rights. You can unsubscribe at any time.
The implementation of the Brexit trade deal has resulted in huge impacts on both sides of the English Channel. The UK has seen its trade with Europe encounter increased bureaucracy as fishermen and figures in the haulage industry rage at the new trading relationship. Last month, the Road Haulage Association (RHA) said loads on lorries going through British ports to the EU had fallen by as much as 68 percent in January 2021 compared to January 2020. The Government challenged this claim, but Cabinet figures do sugges
Mark Rutte alongside Geert Wilders (Image: GETTY) The reasons for this displeasure are obvious: the Dutch and the British share a common Atlantic orientation and a commitment to free trade. Therefore, the Dutch strongly favoured the entry of the UK into the European Economic Community in the 1970s to counterbalance the French and the Germans.
He added: In this sense, the British referendum on EU membership may not be the end of a set of referendums on EU issues. After the success of the eurosceptic side in this referendum and the previous Dutch referendum on the Ukraine-EU treaty, the eurosceptic forces in the Netherlands are likely to use the tool more often to obstruct EU integration.
Britain formally left the EU in January 2020 (Image: GETTY)
The last major European treaty change came in 2007 with the Lisbon Treaty, introduced after French and Dutch voters rejected a proposed EU constitution.
However, some EU members are likely to be wary of giving up more power to Brussels, with Poland and Hungary already locked in a standoff with the European Commission over their attitudes towards law and domestic political opposition.
Criticising the conference one EU diplomat commented: “With so many presidents the Future of Europe looks more like the supreme Soviet than the liberal open society it’s meant to embody.”