Chancellor George Osborne heads to Brussels today as he attempts to weaken European ministerial resolve on capping bankers' bonuses as formal talks on the plan progress.
The MEPs' proposal, backed by the European Commission, also seeks to impose limits on salaries in addition to plans that compel banks to increase their liquidity and lend more money to small business.
The UK government, led by David Cameron, has already expressed its opposition to the cap on bonuses, set at the same level as a year's salary or a maximum of twice their pay if backed by a majority of shareholders.
Osborne is unlikely to garner much support from other countries, and given the fact that the UK has no veto on the issue and the measures only require a weighted majority of member states to become law, the Chancellor is unlikely to change EU views.
Yesterday saw France's finance minister Pierre Moscovici vow that the deal would not be renegotiated. He said: 'Everyone must live with what is on the table. I told George Osborne, when I was in London, these moral rules apply to everyone, even the City.'
The UK government fears that the new rules - set to kick in early next year if ratified - will drive wealth and jobs from the City.
But such sentiment has been hit by the recent result of Swiss voters who gave their government a clear message to curb excessive director pay following the outcome of a referendum in which they approved proposals by a 67.9% margin.
The proposals - expected to be among the toughest rules on executive pay in the world - could see reforms include a binding annual shareholder vote on executive compensation for listed firms and a ban on golden handshake and parachutes - bonus payments for new or departing executives.
The proposed new EU rules are not expected to apply to most bank employees, but are said to be aimed squarely at traders and senior management whose bonuses are often several time times their already generous base salary.
However, there is a potential legal loophole, which UK-based banks are considering.