Franco-German deal would see EU court police national budgets

German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Nicolas Sarkozy have endorsed an awkward compromise on the wielding of sanctions by the EU's top court against allegedly fiscally wayward governments.

In what at first glance looks like a victory for the French leader, the pair made it very clear after their meeting in Paris on Monday (5 December) that the European Court of Justice cannot "annul a national budget".

However, the two leaders - which Brussels wags have collapsed i...