U.K prime minister David Cameron defeated as MP’s call for real reduction in EU spending

David Cameron suffered a humiliating Commons defeat last night as Tory rebels joined Labour to demand he fights for a cut in EU spending.

He had indicated he would use Britain’s veto unless Brussels agreed to limit its budget increases to the level of inflation. But this did not satisfy the Eurosceptics in his party, who insist on a real-terms reduction.

In the first major defeat of Mr Cameron’s premiership, a total of 53 Tory backbenchers voted with Labour, which was accused of cynically shifting its position on EU spending earlier this week to embarrass the Prime Minister. Senior government figures had spent the day pleading with rebel Tories to accept that a real-terms budget freeze was the best possible outcome from a crunch EU summit next week

But ministers sat grim-faced as Commons Speaker John Bercow announced that MPs had instead backed a call for a cut by 307 votes to 294. Mr Cameron had earlier told MPs: ‘This Government is taking the toughest line in these budget negotiations of any government since we joined the European Union.

‘At best we would like it cut, at worst frozen, and I’m quite prepared to use the veto if we don’t get a deal which is good for Britain. But let’s be clear – it is in our interest to try to get a deal because a seven-year freeze would keep our bills down compared to annual budgets.