U.K.'s PM David Cameron rejects proposed EU deal (by Polya Lesova)

LONDON (MarketWatch) -- British Prime Minister David Cameron said early Friday that he had decided not to participate in a deal proposed by Germany and France to amend the European Union treaty and bind the 27 EU members into a closer fiscal union. "What is on offer isn't in Britain's interests, so I didn't agree to it," Cameron said at a press briefing after overnight talks in Brussels. Britain is a member of the EU, but it does not use the euro as its currency and has negotiated an opt-out clause which means it's not required to adopt the euro at some future point. "We want the euro-zone countries to come together and solve their problems, but we should only allow that to happen inside the European Union treaties if there are proper protections for the single market and for other key British interests," Cameron said. "Without those safeguards, it is better not to have a treaty within a treaty, but to have those countries make their arrangements separately. That is what is now going to happen," he added. The British prime minister has come under heavy pressure from Conservatives at home to take a hardline approach in Brussels.