The British Prime Minister arrived in Brussels flanked by more than two-dozen lawyers and advisors, sparring for a fight.
"I'll be battling for Britain” David Cameron told reporters as he entered two-days of negotiations at the European Council.
“If we can get a good deal I'll take that deal.”
“But I will not take a deal that doesn't meet what we need. I think it's much more important to get this right than to do anything in a rush. But with goodwill, with hard work, we can get a better deal for Britain."
The President of the European Council, Donald Tusk, described the Summit as “make or break”.
Martin Schulz, President of the European Parliament, warned that if Britain voted to leave, Europe would be “left to drift into the insignificant backwaters of the world political scene”.
"The overwhelming majority in the European Parliament wants to see the UK remain in the European Union” he said.
"In the globalised 21st century we need the UK more than ever – and we are convinced that the UK will be better off as part of the European Union.”
"At a time when the United States are increasingly turning inward, when Russia is challenging the global security architecture in Ukraine and Syria, when China is rising in East Asia and simultaneously slowing down economically, surely, we Europeans have to stick together more than ever.”
"But if we Europeans part ways, labouring under the fond illusion that, now of all times, the finest hour of the nation state has arrived, we should make no mistake about the consequences.”
"We will be left to drift into the insignificant backwaters of the world political scene.”
The United Kingdom requires all 27 European Union Prime Minister and Presidents to sign off on controversial concessions.
The Conservative Party Leader hopes a renegotiated membership will be enough to appease British voters – and his nervous Euro-skeptic backbenchers - ahead of a promised in/out referendum, which could be held as early as June.
While German Chancellor, Angela Merkel, said “we will do everything we can to ensure that the UK remains part of the EU” other nations seemed less enthusiastic.
Poland’s Prime Minister, Beata Szydlo, said she wanted to reach a “good agreement, but not at any price”.
The Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary and Poland have raised objections to proposed benefit cuts, which could affect their citizens living in Britain.
France continues to oppose plans to protect the City of London by giving non-Eurozone nations more power to stall financial regulation.
As all-night talks began, European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker said he was “quite confident” leaders would achieve a compromise.
“I’m convinced that Britain will be an active and constructive member of the European Union,” Mr Juncker said.
The President of the European Parliament, Martin Schulz, said all nations would work together “contractively” to achieve a deal.
“Together we are stronger.”
Speaking with SBS News, Nigel Farage, Leader of the UK Independence Party, also known as UKIP, said he has “never felt more confident” that Britain would vote to leave the European Union.
“Open borders, immigration and linked security issues are now the number one issue in British politics,” Mr Farage said.
“The whole point of Mr Cameron’s renegotiation was to deal with that issue and frankly he’s failed.”
“What the British voters want is an Australian style points system, where we can decide who comes to Britain, we can exclude criminals, we can make people bring their own health insurance, all the things that you as a properly run country do and that is exactly what the British people want.”
British media reports suggest more than 150 of Mr. Cameron’s Conservative Party MPs could vote to leave.
The Prime Minister will allow his cabinet and backbench to campaign on conscience, once he presents them with a signed agreement from this week’s Summit.
Several high-profile parliamentary colleagues, including Mayor of London Boris Johnson, are yet to publicly state their position.
“I’m looking forward to the outcome of all of this far more than he is”, Mr Farage said.
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