Coffee and croissants with Barroso won't solve Tory trouble in Europe
Ken Clarke's legendary hush puppies made no sound this week as they padded their way to EU Commission President Barroso's office. True, the Daily Telegraph got wind of the story last Monday, but between then and the Shadow Business Secretary's return home there was no further media comment, no photographic evidence and not so much as a press release to mark the occasion. For the Tories, this silence qualifies as a result. Their only pro-European big gun, Clarke's mission was to build bridges in advance of a General Election which, if the Tories were to win it, would usher in the most destructive, anti-European government in British history. This task was not an easy one. The last thing David Cameron wanted is to carry it out in public. Either his emissary went to Barroso with all eurosceptic guns blazing and annoyed those who matter most or else he makes cooing noises that would set off spasms of fury from the Tories' euro-hostile majority. You can understand why this meeting was not for public consumption.