When voters in France and the Netherlands turned down the proposal for a Constitution for the European Union, the world knew that the European project was in deep trouble. Last week’s bruising battle over the medium-term future of the Union’s budget has confirmed that verdict with a vengeance. It also brought to a sorry close the UK’s six-month presidency of the European Council, confirming Britain’s long-standing reputation as the odd-man-out in the European Union.
When voters in France and the Netherlands turned down the proposal for a Constitution for the European Union, the world knew that the European project was in deep trouble. Last week’s bruising battle over the medium-term future of the Union’s budget has confirmed that verdict with a vengeance. It also brought to a sorry close the UK’s six-month presidency of the European Council, confirming Britain’s long-standing reputation as the odd-man-out in the European Union.