Cameron to speed up EU talks before referendum: paper

Britain's Prime Minister David Cameron and his wife Samantha return to Number 10 Downing Street after meeting with Queen Elizabeth at Buckingham Palace in London, Britain May 8, 2015.[Photo/Agencies]

LONDON - British Prime Minister David Cameron is to make finance minister George Osborne his lead negotiator on Europe and speed up his push to win concessions from the EU before a planned referendum on Britain's membership of the bloc, a newspaper reported.

The Sunday Times said Osborne would be backed by Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond. Cameron will send them to Berlin and Brussels as part of a 100-day plan after winning a parliamentary majority on Thursday.

Cameron will also prioritise a reform of the country's electoral districts, the newspaper said.

Cameron promised voters he would push to reclaim powers from the European Union before holding an in-out referendum by the end of 2017. Much of the plan remains vague but he has said he wants to make it harder for newly arrived migrants to claim welfare benefits.

European leaders lost no time on Friday in offering Cameron talks on EU reform, bidding to ease uncertainty about Britain's future in the bloc.