New plan aims to end European debt crisis

But Simon Tilford at the CER, says the new treaty does nothing to solve Europe's debt crisis. "The problem is that fiscal austerity will not solve this crisis, at least not alone. Fiscal austerity has in many ways become part of the crisis. Enforcing unending austerity on countries in the periphery has already made their predicaments much worse and threatens to make a bad situation in Spain and Italy even worse than it currently is." Mr Tilford says whether Britain will be weaker for staying out of the deal depends on what happens to the euro area. "If the eurozone does master this crisis and holds together, and we see increased integration between the participating countries within the eurozone, then Britain will become progressively marginalised within the EU." And if the eurozone breaks apart? Then that, he says, is another story.