Hr. formand, hr. kommissær, hr. formand for Rådet, hvis De tillader det, vil jeg gerne koncentrere min tale om Dem, hr. formand for Rådet, fordi jeg mener, at Det Europæiske Råd ikke i tilstrækkelig grad har deltaget i de europæiske debatter i de seneste år og også har holdt sig lidt fornemt tilbage, når det handlede om at rage kastanjerne ud af ilden.
Mr President, Mr Commissioner, Mr President-in-Office of the Council, if you will allow me, I would like to address my speech to you directly, Mr President-in-Office of the Council, because I believe that the European Council in recent years has become far too an insignificant factor at the heart of European discussions and has also held back somewhat when it has come down to stepping in and taking charge.