Graham's blog entry Friday 22 February

Published on Fri 22nd Feb 2008

The February week in Strasbourg is often a quiet one and this was no exception. The journalists who made the trek down here found it difficult to justify their presence. Our main debate was a self-congratulatory affair of the kind which grates with me: we debated and later approved by almost 4 to 1 a recommendation that Parliament approve the Lisbon Treaty. While in London or in Dublin the Treaty's opponents seem to be making all the headlines, here they simply came dressed in yellow sweatshirts accusing the majority of "chickening out" of a referendum. The Speaker was applauded when he said to them "If your parents could see you now they'd be ashamed of you".

Reactions to Kosovo's declaration of independence were much sought, but since "inevitable" was the adjective most often used there was not much of a news story in it. I said I did not believe it would have a "balkanising" impact in Cyprus or Romania or Spain. 18 out of 27 member states recognised Kosovo almost immediately: if they had held back their declaration until after Spain's GE on 10 March it would have been more. All EU countries agreed however to send a military mission there to help keep the peace.

Two current (and one former) Prime Ministers visited Parliament. 42 year old Swedish PM Fredrik Reinfeldt addressed the House on the future of Europe, the last in a series of debates which I pioneered after the French and Dutch rejections of the draft Constitutional Treaty. He was positive and optimistic and made the case for an open, modern EU: and was probably surprised by the virulence of the opposition to the Lisbon Treaty expressed by his fellow Conservative (and SW England MEP) Giles Chichester, who leads the British Conservatives and placed them once again firmly in the past. For my speech in the debate, see http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getDoc.do?pubRef=-//EP//TEXT+CRE+20080219+ITEM-009+DOC+XML+V0//EN&language=EN&query=INTERV&detail=2-159.

Fifty-something French PM Francois Fillon came to do the rounds of the political group leaders in advance of the French EU Presidency which starts in July. I found him charming, urbane and open to ideas (and learned that his wife is Welsh). We discussed France's priorities, which are businesslike and unexceptional; and I was somewhat reassured that whatever crazy antics Sarkozy might get up to, the administration beneath him will probably smooth over any subsequent embarrassment.

I hosted a lunch on Tuesday for former PM (and King) Simeon Saxe Coburg Gotha of Bulgaria. One of the many rumours which circulate on such occasions held that he is after an EU job; at 70, I doubt it. I think he was genuinely interested to get a feel for the curious hybrid democratic beast which is the European Parliament.

Greece's refusal to reclaim from Olympic Airways state aid payments deemed illegal in 1995 was condemned last week by the European Court of Justice. This opens the door for the Commission to appeal for a fine, which many of us believe it should. But Greece is no longer bottom of the league table where implementation of EU law is concerned. That dubious honour now goes to the Czech Republic. If a country does not transpose EU Directives into national law, the EU opens infringement proceedings. But the more recent joiners are not generally the laggards: indeed, Estonia and Lithuania are currently top of the league.

Know of an EU citizen living permanently outside their country of citizenship? The chances are, you do. There are currently over eight million. My Italian wife Rita is comforted by the knowledge that her plight is shared by so many. This weekend, however, she'll be back home since we are skiing with our children in the Italian Alps.