My Lords, I hope that I shall be forgiven for focusing my question just on the European Union negotiations in this massive Statement that has covered so many issues, not least because so much has been said and words are almost inadequate in the face of the Tunisian horror—and, anyway, I agree totally with the Prime Minister that this is not just a western issue but a global issue requiring a global response.
I turn to the EU negotiations, which came at the end of the Statement. I admire very much the tenacity and energy of my right honourable friend the Prime Minister for getting the negotiations on the table. He has constantly said that the key issue is not so much British demands as EU reform; he has said that the EU is an “organisation in peril”, and that we need,
“'the flexibility of networks, not the rigidity of blocs”.
In the light of that essential insight, which is quite right, when are our negotiators going to begin to work with their allies across Europe on the fundamental redesign of the very troubled European Union today? Are not we leaving it a bit late?