Hr. formand, mine damer og herrer parlamentsmedlemmer, d 'herrer kommissærer, mine damer og herrer, tilgiv mig først min forsinkelse, som ikke skyldes kulinariske udskejelser, men simpelthen den omstændighed, at den franske præsident, Jacques Chirac, var blandt os.
Mr President, honourable Members of the European Parliament, Commissioners, please forgive me first of all for my lateness, which is not due to any lunchtime whim but simply to the fact that Jacques Chirac, the French President, was with us.