French blow to Blair's bid for permanent EU presidency
Tony Blair received an unwelcome 55th birthday present from France yesterday when President Nicolas Sarkozy abandoned his efforts to push the former British prime minister's bid to become the first permanent president of the European Union Council next year.
Mr Sarkozy, who takes over the rotating EU presidency in July, is now backing the candidature of Jean-Claude Juncker, the Luxembourg prime minister, according to senior French officials. The French president was once a strong Blair backer, but has bowed to pressure from other EU governments.
Some countries are anti-Blair while others worry that a political heavyweight could try to inflate the job's importance.
Another possible option is that the job could go to European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso, with Mr Juncker succeeding him. (© Independent News Service)
- By John Lichfield in Paris
