Herman Van Rompuy is determined to go ahead with this month's gathering on the bloc's €1 trillion seven-year budget – despite UK parliament demands for cuts that make an agreement unlikely.
Mr Van Rompuy is weighing whether to seek a compromise with David Cameron, the British prime minister, or isolate the UK by striking a deal with the other 26 EU members. Most of them have shown more flexibility towards slight budget increases, said officials briefed on the matter.
Other EU countries have raised concerns about drafts of the blueprint for the 2014-20 budget, including Sweden and the Netherlands, which have both objected to the limited cuts included in a compromise proffered by lead negotiators last week.
British demands for a freeze amount to an approximately €200 billion cut from an original €1,033 billion proposal made by the European Commission this year. A German compromise plan is close to the UK line but Britain had suggested that it was not enough, even before the UK parliament took its stand. The increasingly hardline stance taken by Britain has begun to sour opinion in other EU countries against UK stances on unrelated issues, according to senior bloc officials, including protections for the British financial sector sought during the debate over a eurozone banking union.
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