Euro budget deal 'close' after through-the-night talks

European leaders are set to announce a long-term deal that would see the EU budget cut, in real terms, for the first time since the European Union was created.

After through-the-night talks in Brussels, a draft proposal has been tabled which would cap the EU budget at €960bn (£818bn) between 2014 and 2020. That would trim more than €34bn off the previous budget and is more than €12bn short of a recommendation tabled in November which caused a rift between some leaders. But today's deal - if and when announced - will likely be hailed as a triumph by those who had been keen to stem Europe's spending, including David Cameron. Germany and other northern European nations were also keen to lower EU spending to reflect the cuts being made by nat...