DesertFox
06-25-2005, 09:34 AM
WHEN Tony Blair took to the floor of the European Parliament his officials, muttering about Daniel and the lions’ den, expected him to get the roughest of rides.
Just 24 hours earlier, European MPs had given a lengthy standing ovation to Jean-Claude Juncker, the Prime Minister of Luxembourg, after he denounced Mr Blair for derailing last Friday’s EU summit and accused him of being determined to turn their shared dream of a politically united Europe into a free-trade zone.
His declaration that he was a passionate pro-European was indeed greeted with boos. But then something unexpected happened: the jeers became drowned out by cheers and clapping. “It was symbolic of how the mood has swung,” one British official said.
Mr Blair may not have stormed the Bastille, but wielding his motto “modernise or die”, he had stormed the temple of European federalism.
Disgruntled pro-Chirac French MEPs skulked at the back of the hall. After his speech setting out his plans for the European presidency and emphasising the need to modernise the EU and to divert its €50 billion (£33 billion) agriculture budget to industries of the future, one Spanish journalist ran out declaring: “I am convinced! He is absolutely right!”
British officials could barely contain their delight at the reaction around Europe yesterday. Just a week earlier, Mr Blair had been the whipping-boy of Europe, with President Chirac of France and Gerhard Schröder, the German Chancellor, leading a loud chorus of denunciation, accusing the leader of perfidious Albion of dragging the EU into its deepest crisis by selfishly refusing to give up its budget rebate. “England is very isolated in Europe,” Dominique Bussereau, the French Agriculture Minister, had said.
By yesterday morning, Mr Blair had become the toast of Europe. The British may have become cynical about his Honest Tony oratory and big-tent politics, but on the unsuspecting mainland, they still worked their magic. Just as Mr Blair is most enfeebled at home, across the EU he is being hailed as the natural leader of the continent: the only man who can save Europe from itself.
More (http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,13509-1668302,00.html)
Just 24 hours earlier, European MPs had given a lengthy standing ovation to Jean-Claude Juncker, the Prime Minister of Luxembourg, after he denounced Mr Blair for derailing last Friday’s EU summit and accused him of being determined to turn their shared dream of a politically united Europe into a free-trade zone.
His declaration that he was a passionate pro-European was indeed greeted with boos. But then something unexpected happened: the jeers became drowned out by cheers and clapping. “It was symbolic of how the mood has swung,” one British official said.
Mr Blair may not have stormed the Bastille, but wielding his motto “modernise or die”, he had stormed the temple of European federalism.
Disgruntled pro-Chirac French MEPs skulked at the back of the hall. After his speech setting out his plans for the European presidency and emphasising the need to modernise the EU and to divert its €50 billion (£33 billion) agriculture budget to industries of the future, one Spanish journalist ran out declaring: “I am convinced! He is absolutely right!”
British officials could barely contain their delight at the reaction around Europe yesterday. Just a week earlier, Mr Blair had been the whipping-boy of Europe, with President Chirac of France and Gerhard Schröder, the German Chancellor, leading a loud chorus of denunciation, accusing the leader of perfidious Albion of dragging the EU into its deepest crisis by selfishly refusing to give up its budget rebate. “England is very isolated in Europe,” Dominique Bussereau, the French Agriculture Minister, had said.
By yesterday morning, Mr Blair had become the toast of Europe. The British may have become cynical about his Honest Tony oratory and big-tent politics, but on the unsuspecting mainland, they still worked their magic. Just as Mr Blair is most enfeebled at home, across the EU he is being hailed as the natural leader of the continent: the only man who can save Europe from itself.
More (http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,13509-1668302,00.html)