Britain takes over the EU's chair

The British presidency of the EU starts on Friday (1 July) in an atmosphere of high expectation following Tony Blair's strong calls in recent days for reform of the bloc.

This expectation will be coupled by a general curiosity to see how London handles being the negotiator primarily for Europe rather than for its national interests, given its on-off relationship with Brussels.

Mr Blair's ambitious reform rhetoric has in part helped the British prime minister stem the negative crit...