A tale of two speeches today, as Brown and Cameron delivered addresses largely on the markets and financial regulation. The big difference: Brown’s was directed at a European audience in Strasbourg, whilst Cameron’s was delivered here in Blighty. It made for a striking comparison.
On the one hand, you had the PM putting a Continental spin on his usual platitudes – he even said that “we in Europe are uniquely placed…”. Will this really achieve all that much, apart from raising a few chuckles from those European politicians who can remember when Chancellor Brown frequently snubbed meetings of EU finance ministers? Of course, the idea is that Brown has to rally support ahead of the G20 and, in turn, the Downing St strategists hope that will translate to a G20 bounce for the PM. But, with the hope that anything meaningful will be achieved in Watford dwindling by the day, there’s still a grim futility about it all.
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