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Britain will not agree to new refugee-sharing plan

Britain will not agree to any new EU plans to share refugees across the continent, ITV News Political Editor Robert Peston has been told.

The European Commission is expected to propose scrapping current rules meaning refugees and migrants have to claim asylum in the first country they arrive in.

The move could leave Britain and other northern European nations more open to an increase in migration, something ITV News was told the government would oppose.

It comes as the prime minister meets a host of EU counterparts at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, with some of the focus on his attempts to finalise the deal.

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PM set for EU battle over plan to ditch key asylum rule

The European Commission wants to change rules that currently mean refugees must claim asylum in the first country they arrive in, which could increase pressure on Britain to take more refugees.

Scrapping the so-called Dublin regulation - seen as the lynchpin of the EU's asylum system - could leave the UK and other northern European countries more open to migration flows.

The 'Dublin rule' currently means refugees and migrants claiming asylum in eastern Europe and heading to the UK can be sent back to the country they registered in. Credit: Reuters

According to the Financial Times, the proposals are expected to be put forward in March.

The timing of the announcement is seen as a significant blow to Prime Minister David Cameron as he bids for reforms to the European Union in the face of the Brexit referendum campaign.

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Britain will not agree to new refugee-sharing plan

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