EU treaties must have the unanimous consent of all 27 members. Because the U.K. will not join, the fiscal treaty will in fact be a treaty between governments which 'coincidentally' are EU members.
One wonders if this is the first step in the U.K. withdrawing from the EU? The U.K.'s ideal position would be within the customs union but outside the rest of the Brussels-based folderol.
It isn't clear if the EU will live with "cafeteria-style" membership for the U.K. It sets an uncomfortable precedent.
