Loser Cameron branded 'the Rooney of Europe': PM warns Britain is in a 'war' with EU after leaders railroad through appointment of arch-federalist Juncker

• Luxembourger nominated by EU leaders to be next Commission president
• Only Hungary backed Britain against 26 other EU countries
• Told EU leaders they made a 'profound mistake' in the 'backroom deal'
• But Cameron told to 'wake up and smell the coffee' by Finland's premier
• German media said Cameron was becoming 'more like Wayne Rooney'
• Newspapers ridiculed the PM: 'He lines up, he loses, he goes home'

By James Chapman

David Cameron last night warned that Britain is in a ‘war’ with the EU after European leaders railroaded through the appointment of arch-federalist Jean-Claude Juncker.

In some of the strongest remarks by a British prime minister in Brussels, he condemned the ‘backroom deal’ and warned it could see Britain pushed towards the exit door.

He warned counterparts they were making a ‘profound mistake’ by choosing Mr Juncker as the next president of the European Commission.

An agitated David Cameron admitted he had lost 'the battle' to stop Jean-Claude Juncker becoming Commission president but claimed he would 'win the war' to reform the EU 

Mr Cameron lost the vote against appointing Mr Juncker by 26 countries to two. Only Hungary joined the UK in opposing the former Luxembourg premier

German media ridiculed both the PM and the English football team by mockingly comparing David Cameron and Wayne Rooney, saying of them both: 'He lines up, he loses, he goes home'

European Council President Herman Van Rompuy, who represents national leaders in the EU, announced the decision to make Jean-Claude Juncker the European Commission president on Twitter. The head of the Commission is the most powerful job in Brussels 

The Prime Minister was furious with the decision to ignore Britain. He said other EU leaders 'could live to regret' the move

The former Luxembourg Prime Minister said he was 'proud and honoured' to be nominated for Brussels top job by the European Council

Former Luxembourg Prime Minister Jean-Claude Juncker (right) was European People's Party's nominee to be Commission president. The party is the largest bloc in the European Parliament. David Cameron pulled the Tories out of the group whose because of it is too federalist, infuriating German Chancellor Angela Merkel (left)

The appointment was approved by EU leaders over a lunch of gazpacho, turbot with chervil and baby vegetables, and chocolate and apricot millefeuille.

Mr Cameron forced the issue to a vote but ended up in a minority of two to 26 – with only Hungary backing Britain in opposing the ex-Luxembourg leader’s appointment.

German media wasted no time in using Mr Cameron’s defeat to ridicule both him and the England football team. Newspaper Bild said he ‘is becoming more and more the Wayne Rooney of EU politics: he lines up, he loses, he goes home’.

More...

• Defiant PM won't say sorry for bid to block 'boozing' Juncker: Cameron says he is 'completely unapologetic' as secret talks are held over candidate's drinking habits
• Merkel cuts Cameron adrift and backs Juncker for EU chief: PM set to force a vote for first time after saying new president's opposition to reform is unacceptable
• 'No one knows what he's supposed to have done wrong': Top Tory Ken Clarke says row over Jean-Claude Juncker blown 'out of all proportion'
• 3.3million jobs at risk if Britain leaves the EU, warns Lib Dem Danny Alexander as tensions grow with Tories over Europe

The Prime Minister said support for the EU in Britain was already ‘wafer thin’ and would be further undermined by Mr Juncker’s coronation ahead of the in/out referendum the Tories have pledged to hold in 2017 if re-elected.

He condemned the EU’s new boss as ‘the career insider of Brussels’ , saying he represented ‘a big step backwards’. Mr Cameron, who says he wants Britain to remain in a reformed EU, added: ‘If you want change, is that the type of person you want for the future?’

He warned that Britain faced a ‘long campaign’ to claw back powers from Brussels, saying: ‘Frankly, sometimes you have to be ready to lose a battle in order to win a war.’

Mr Cameron added: ‘There are times when it’s very important that you stick to your principles ... even if the odds are heavily stacked against you rather than go along with something that you believe is profoundly wrong.’
He said the recent European elections had shown that there was ‘huge disquiet about the way the European Union works’.
EU leaders agreed to meet again in Brussels next month to carve up more top jobs – a prospect Mr Cameron sarcastically described as ‘another day in paradise’. He said that despite his anger, he accepted the outcome and would try to work with Mr Juncker.

The PM chatted with Lithuania's President Dalia Grybauskaite (left) and Denmark's Prime Minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt (right) in Brussels today

Mr Cameron warned there would be 'consequences' of ignoring Britain's objections to Mr Juncker and appointing him anyway

Mr Juncker is seen as an 'arch federalist' by the Government because of his record of wanting more power for Brussels over national Parliaments

The veteran European fixer was the candidate of the largest bloc within the European Parliament - the EPP centre right group which the Tories were members of until Mr Cameron withdrew after becoming Conservative leader

However, some British officials privately believe Mr Juncker’s presidency could easily turn into a disaster.
This could see him step down before the end of his five-year term, which is likely to be dominated by the threat of a British exit from the EU. Mr Cameron found himself humiliatingly isolated after being double-crossed by Germany’s Angela Merkel, who initially told him she wanted to block Mr Juncker.
It is the first time a big EU job been filled without the agreement of one of the large member states.
Mr Cameron complained Mr Juncker’s entire career has been founded on grabbing more powers for Brussels and away from nation states.
The new president’s alleged heavy drinking  has also been discussed over recent weeks by worried leaders, according to one European diplomat. He was spotted waiting for the announcement of his victory in a Brussels bar.

Mr Cameron, attending a memorial service in Ypres yesterday, has clashed with his ally Angela Merkel over the appointment of Mr Juncker

The German Chancellor is said to have privately admitted she had reservations about the former Luxembourg Prime Minister 

Mrs Merkel was attacked in Germany for appearing to backtrack in her support for Mr Juncker, forcing her to eventually publicly support his appointment

Finnish prime minister Alexander Stubb said people in Britain who want to leave the EU should ‘wake up and smell the coffee’.
He added: ‘The EU is a very good thing for the UK. Over 50 per cent of the trade of the UK goes to  the EU.’
Hungarian prime minister Viktor Orban, the only other leader to vote with Mr Cameron against Mr Juncker, said he did so as ‘a matter of principle’, adding: ‘It is against Hungary’s interest that things should progress in this direction.’
Labour had backed Mr Cameron’s stance in opposing Mr Juncker. But  leader Ed Miliband seized on the outcome as ‘an utter humiliation’.
He said: ‘Instead of building alliances in Europe, David Cameron burns our alliances. And it is Britain that loses out.’
Eurosceptic Tories seized on Mr Juncker’s appointment as evidence the EU is unlikely ever to embrace fundamental reform.
Former minister John Redwood said: ‘This episode has reminded all in the UK that the EU is not “coming our way”.’
He added: ‘The battle over Mr Juncker was but the first skirmish in a long negotiation of a new relationship for the UK with the rest of the EU.’
Tory MP John Baron said: ‘The Prime Minister’s attempt to stop Juncker has been laudable. The peoples of Europe have made it clear that they want an EU which is less bureaucratic, less interfering and less bossy.’