Valéry Giscard d’Estaing turned up in the European Parliament to talk about the new Treaty. And as these Continental politicians are, he was incontinent about it.

The former President of the Convention which had drafted the rejected constitutional treaty told his adoring audience of MEPs that the new treaty “is the continuation of the Laeken process” and that “90% of the words are the same” as the European Constitution, which was rejected in referendums in France and the Netherlands.

Talking about the decision not to keep the constitutional terminology, and to officially throw out the symbols of the Union (anthem, flag...) he admitted that they were omitted to avoid that the new treaty “would resemble the constitutional treaty.” However, he called on the Parliament to note that the symbols of the EU were everywhere already and that they shouldn’t get too upset about it. Even on Bastille day the Ode to Joy played alongside the Marseillaise.

He pointed out that the “primacy of the European law is fixed by an annex.” He pointed out that the “High Representative for Common Foreign and Security is one and the same as the Union Minister for Foreign Affairs” in the Constitution treaty and that “in any case, everyone will call him ‘Minister’.”

For the former President of the Convention, “The changes are only in presentation, but the content are the results of the European Convention and of the 2004 IGC [the ‘European Constitution’]. They remain unchanged, but in a different order, with some minor corrections in the form of protocols.”

Of course in his mind nobody ever rejected his baby. “The French ‘No’ was not a ‘No’ to our text.” He didn’t go into detail what the French were rejecting, but in no way could the result be taken as a condemnation of the European constitution, but just to make sure he commended Sarkozy because the latter has opposed referenda and opted for the Parliamentary way to ratification, “which guarantees ratification.”

Meanwhile Gordon Brown said about the European Treaty “We will not require a referendum on this. It is something that can be worked on closely by Parliament. I think we can make progress quickly on this.” It even appears the new British Prime Minister would still like Britain to join the Euro as well. “He said that Britain would continue to ‘periodically review’ the idea of switching to the euro.”