by Nick Archer, Ambassador to Denmark
In my last blog I wondered when the Danish Presidency was going to begin in earnest. Silly, really: it certainly has for the Danes. And several days later, we’ve seen Brussels wake up from its Christmas and New Year break, and Danish diplomats taking the chair at meetings down there. Suddenly the first ministerial gathering to take place in Copenhagen, the Justice and Home Affairs Council, seems imminent. Meanwhile, the European Commission – all the Commissioners – is in town as I write, and last night Ambassadors were invited down to the official opening ceremony – music and speeches – in Copenhagen’s still newish concert hall. So I suppose it is now underway.
I am not sure what one says about a concert of light classical music punctuated by Prime Ministerial and Presidential speeches, except that such events seem to be an unavoidable feature of European Union life? The music was well played and sung and all four speakers were admirably brief and to the point. Afterwards, a reception offered the opportunity to talk to all kinds of people about all kinds of things. My main message right now is that people here should believe our Prime Minister and Deputy Prime Minister when they say that Britain is not heading for the EU exit. And that if we can only get the right amount of attention focussed on the growth, jobs, Single Market and free trade challenges the EU faces, that will be abundantly clear. These are the issues we are most passionate about. The Danish Presidency focus on them is absolutely right; the fear, of course, is that the eurozone crisis, vital though it is to work through this, will distract too much attention from this equally vital agenda.
The people who get this instantly are business leaders. Presidency notwithstanding, I am carrying on with a programme of mainly inward investment-focussed visits on good Danish companies. CEOs naturally want to hear about our intentions. When I explain, all those I’ve recently seen have simply nodded agreement to both our analysis and our conclusions. Which is hugely heartening. It’s not the euro or growth through trade – it’s both. And since we can contribute most on the latter, we must do that – for ourselves and for Europe.