Last year, William Hague predicted the scene when the new President of Europe visited Downing Street for the first time. The long presidential motorcade would draw up outside Number 10, police outriders would clear the streets, the European flag would be flying on the bonnet of the car, the world’s press assembled for this historic occasion. Then out of the car would step…Herman van Rompuy. Who? A bit of an anti-climax I know. After week of hype and speculation that none other than Tony Blair would get the job he created for himself we get Mr van Rompuy (pictured right).
I am sure Mr van Rompuy is a very nice man - a typical Benelux politician who is very good at running Belgium. But is he really the sort of the bloke we want running Europe? Well apparently he is. According to our dear leader he is a ‘consensus builder’ who brought ‘stability’ to his country after ‘months of uncertainty’ – how admirable. To you and I that means he has about as much political clout as…well Gordon Brown, is very good at sitting and Chairing meetings whilst having no opinions of his own and doing what the French, the British and the Germans tell him to do. A victory for Brussels bureaucracy! So rather than giving the people of Europe a dynamic leader who can actually lead Europe in dealing with the issues such as climate change. As much as I don’t like him, at least Tony Blair would have the charisma to actually make an impact.
But don’t start getting sulky yet, there is something to celebrate for us Brits. None other than our own Cathy Ashton has landed the new number 2 job in Brussels, European High Representative for Foreign Affairs. Cathy Ashton? Yes she is British I can assure you. Haven’t heard of her? No, nor have I. But she is the best politician we can come up with to represent us in Europe.
Baroness Ashton as she is entitled to be known went to Brussels after Mandy came back to save Brown last October. Before that she did a short stint as Labour’s leader in the House of Lords but her political credentials don’t go much further than that. She will be responsible for being Europe’s top negotiator in diplomatic relations and will have to represent Europe to everyone from Barack Obama to Robert Mugabe. Yet Baroness Ashton’s foreign affairs experience probably extends to the couple of bits of foreign languages she picked up on the odd holiday to the continent. Her job before she joined the Lords? She was Chairman of Hertfordshire Health Authority. Good preparation for the international stage indeed.
If Europe wants to be taken seriously by other countries then we’re going to have to start coming up with something better than the two nobodies European leaders produced today.
I am sure Mr van Rompuy is a very nice man - a typical Benelux politician who is very good at running Belgium. But is he really the sort of the bloke we want running Europe? Well apparently he is. According to our dear leader he is a ‘consensus builder’ who brought ‘stability’ to his country after ‘months of uncertainty’ – how admirable. To you and I that means he has about as much political clout as…well Gordon Brown, is very good at sitting and Chairing meetings whilst having no opinions of his own and doing what the French, the British and the Germans tell him to do. A victory for Brussels bureaucracy! So rather than giving the people of Europe a dynamic leader who can actually lead Europe in dealing with the issues such as climate change. As much as I don’t like him, at least Tony Blair would have the charisma to actually make an impact.
But don’t start getting sulky yet, there is something to celebrate for us Brits. None other than our own Cathy Ashton has landed the new number 2 job in Brussels, European High Representative for Foreign Affairs. Cathy Ashton? Yes she is British I can assure you. Haven’t heard of her? No, nor have I. But she is the best politician we can come up with to represent us in Europe.
Baroness Ashton as she is entitled to be known went to Brussels after Mandy came back to save Brown last October. Before that she did a short stint as Labour’s leader in the House of Lords but her political credentials don’t go much further than that. She will be responsible for being Europe’s top negotiator in diplomatic relations and will have to represent Europe to everyone from Barack Obama to Robert Mugabe. Yet Baroness Ashton’s foreign affairs experience probably extends to the couple of bits of foreign languages she picked up on the odd holiday to the continent. Her job before she joined the Lords? She was Chairman of Hertfordshire Health Authority. Good preparation for the international stage indeed.
If Europe wants to be taken seriously by other countries then we’re going to have to start coming up with something better than the two nobodies European leaders produced today.
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