London: British Prime Minister David Cameron suffered an embarrassing defeat yesterday over how the referendum he has called on leaving the European Union will be conducted.
While the defeat in the House of Commons was on a technicality, it highlights the struggle Cameron faces to keep eurosceptics in his own centre-right Conservative party in line before the vote, due by the end of 2017.
It was Cameron’s first defeat in the Commons, where he has a majority of only 16 seats, since winning Britain’s general election in May. The government had wanted to weaken the usual rules on purdah, under which ministers are banned from making any announcements on funding or other issues which could affect the result of the vote for the last 28 days of a referendum or election campaign. But the normal rules will now be applied after the government’s plans were defeated by 312 to 285 votes.AFP
