How newspapers reported Cameron's EU speech before he made it

http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/greenslade/2013/jan/23/davidcameron-eu

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A look at today's front pages shows how history repeats itself over and over again. We are back, yet again, to the debate about Britain's relationship with Europe - one of the most dominant political themes since the early 1960s.

Even so, David Cameron's pledge to hold an in-out referendum on Britain's membership of the European Union by the end of 2017 is such a twist in this long-running saga that it surely merited its page one status today.

It was the splash in eight titles: "You will get an in or out vote on Europe" (Daily Mail); "Victory for Daily Express crusade: You will get EU referendum" (Daily Express); "Cameron: I'll hold an in-out vote on Europe" (Daily Telegraph); "Cameron pledges in-out referendum on Europe" (The Times); "In or out? PM pledges EU exit vote by 2017" (The Independent); "Cameron pledges in/out vote on Europe" (i); "Cameron to pledge in-out vote on EU" (The Guardian); and "Cameron to pledge an in-out' Vote on EU" (Financial Times).

The three red-tops couldn't bring themselves to give Europe top billing, but all carried front page mentions, with The Sun referring to Cameron's speech as "premiership-defining."

There were few editorials. But the Express wasn't going to miss the chance to pat itself on the back for achieving what it called "the sweetest [of] victories" in a "crusade" it launched in November 2010 "to get Britain out of the European Union via a referendum."

It argued that Cameron had agreed to give people a vote because of pressure from Conservative-minded voters and Express readers but "much remains to be achieved." It concluded:

"This is not yet the end of Britain's disastrous entanglement with the nascent European empire. But we hope to look back on this day at some happy juncture in the future and think of it as the beginning of the end."

The Sun agreed. Its editorial started off by saying: "David Cameron deserves considerable credit for going where his predecessors would not."

But it doesn't trust the prime minister, reminding its audience that he had "weaselled out of the 'cast-iron' referendum guarantee he gave Sun readers six years ago."

It was left to the Mirror, after contending that Cameron's vote pledge was "a dangerous gamble with Britain's political and economic future", to explain what lay behind the initiative:

"This is about placating the right in his party and saving Tory seats at the next election by quashing the threat posed from UKIP."

Meanwhile, to catch up on the Cameron's speech itself go to The Guardian's live blog