BIRMINGHAM, England - British Prime Minister David Cameron on Sunday threatened to scupper European Union budget talks unless other members of the 27-nation bloc agree to "proper control" of spending, without specifying what would be an acceptable settlement for Britain.
Cameron also lent his support to a proposal for two EU budgets, one for the euro zone and another for cash-strapped Britain and the nations outside the single currency, but said it would take some time to come to fruition.
The prime minister used Britain's veto in December to block an EU-wide pact designed to help the euro zone, a move that delighted the anti-EU wing of his Conservative Party but dismayed his Liberal Democrat coalition partners and other European leaders, who eventually agreed a deal without Britain.
"People in Europe know I mean what I say. I sat round that table - 27 countries, 26 of them signing up to a treaty - and I said this is not in Britain's interest. I don't care how much pressure you put on. I'm not signing," he told the BBC.
"They know I'm capable of saying no ... and if I don't get a good deal, I'll say no again ... If we cannot get a deal that has proper control of that budget, if they put forward ideas for massive increases, I won't say yes to it."