George Osborne to the EU: Change or Britain will leave Mr Osborne declined to say in the interview whether or not the British government is planning a referendum. "David Cameron has said recently that a new consensus is necessary for our relations with Europe," Mr Osborne told the newspaper, adding that the British people are "very disappointed" with the EU and are questioning whether it can solve urgent problems and create jobs. Nick Clegg yesterday said the Prime Minister is risking the "livelihood and safety" of millions of British people by raising questions about Britain's EU membership. Mr Clegg said that "playing politics" with EU membership could jeopardise British jobs and hamper international police operations. "When you have one in ten jobs in this country, 3 million people, whose jobs are dependent on our position as a leading member of the world's biggest borderless single market, you play with that status at your peril - these are jobs at stake, livelihoods," he said. Mr Cameron's approach is being resisted by Angela Merkel of Germany, and a senior German politician has accused Britain of trying to "blackmail" the rest of Europe. Mrs Merkel has told the Prime Minister she has no intention of opening an EU treaty negotiation in order to provide a new settlement that can be put to a referendum in Britain.