THE TELEGRAPH: Nicolas Sarkozy has reignited the row over the appointment of European Union commissioners by branding Britain “the big losers”.
The French President said the appointment of Baroness Ashton of Upholland as the EU’s new foreign policy chief was far less important than the elevation of Michel Barnier, France’s former agriculture minister, to the key financial post of commissioner for the internal market, which puts him in charge of supervising the City of London.
In provocative remarks which are certain to inflame tensions, Mr Sarkozy told Le Monde newspaper that the negotiations which resulted in Tony Blair being jettisoned and Herman Van Rompuy, the Belgian Prime Minister, being appointed the new EU president, were a “French victory”.
He said that Britain was against Mr Barnier’s appointment to the financial post, but that he got it through after persuading José Manuel Barroso, the European Commission president, to back the idea.
Mr Sarkozy said: “It’s the first time in 50 years that France has had this role. The English are the big losers in this business.”
The remarks, on the fringes of the Commonwealth Summit in Trinidad and Tobago, are particularly surprising because the French President had been expected to “reassure” the British about the intentions of Mr Barnier, who will play a big role in financial reform and regulation, an issue on which the British and the French have starkly differing views.
Mr Sarkozy has said he will visit London soon to calm worries in the City about a more regulatory French regime orchestrated by Paris.
But his comments to Le Monde will do little to put British minds at rest. >>> Melissa Kite and Kim Wilsher, in Paris | Saturday, November 28, 2009
LE MONDE: A la Commission, Michel Barnier défendra une économie plus régulée >>> Arnaud Leparmentier et Philippe Ricard | Samedi 28 Novembre 2009
