France's Hollande rejects 'a la carte' attitude to EU

French President Francois Hollande has told the European Parliament there can be no "a la carte" attitude to the EU, as tough budget talks approach.

He called for a "multi-faceted Europe which would be neither a two-speed Europe nor an a la carte Europe".

National interests, he said in Strasbourg, risked taking precedence over the interests of the EU.

His remarks were aimed at UK Prime Minister David Cameron, the BBC's Europe editor, Gavin Hewitt, reports.

Mr Cameron announced last month that a referendum would be held on EU membership if his Conservative Party was returned to power at the next general election, expected in 2015.

Voters would be asked to choose between a renegotiated form of membership, and exiting.

Mr Hollande's Foreign Minister, Laurent Fabius, commented at the time: "We want the British to be able to bring all their positive characteristics to Europe... but you can't do Europe a la carte."

The French president's speech comes two days before a summit on the EU's seven-year budget, which is likely to be marked by sharp differences between the leaders.

The UK is pushing for a spending freeze while most other EU members want either to maintain or increase the proposed budget.