You can’t cherrypick from EU membership, Britain warned

Britain received a polite reminder from the most senior civil servant in the European Commission that it could not cherrypick what it wanted from EU membership and warned of a split unless it made a commitment.

The Swiss vote rejecting free movement for EU citizens means it now faces exclusion from other aspects such as research funding — a clear indication of the reality, warned secretary general of the European Commission, Catherine Day.

British membership was one of three major issues the new Commission had to deal with, along with boosting the economic recovery and migration where Europe needed migrants but must control the numbers.