There is no question of "diminishing" the European Union to allow Britain to stay in it, French President Francois Hollande said this evening after British Prime Minister David Cameron demanded a radical reform of the EU and promised a referendum on Britain's membership.

"What I'll say, on behalf of France and as a European, is that it isn't possible to bargain over Europe to hold this referendum," Hollande said on a trip to the Alpine city of Grenoble.

"Europe must be taken as it is. We can help it evolve tomorrow, but we can't offer to reduce it or diminish it on the grounds of (Britain) staying in it."

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