When you read "EU to offer Cameron a deal", look into the small print.
Firstly, the government would have to prove (" prove", not "state") that the benefits system was being "overwhelmed", and request a freeze on new claims.
Then, after due deliberation (days/weeks/months ?) the European Commission would have to agree.
Then, a majority of member states would have to approve the request. Then, and only then, could payments be stopped.
So, the decision to freeze new claims of in-work benefits, one of the main policies of Cameron's election manifesto, will actually be made by b