There is a silver lining to Juncker’s appointment

David Cameron has been trying to look on the bright side after failing to stop Jean-Claude Juncker becoming president of the European Commission. And while that might look like the Prime Minister trying to spin something out of an abject failure, there really is a silver lining to this appointment for Britain, even though you have to look quite hard for it.

The Commission president is indeed important, particularly given his role in determining the EU executive’s policy agenda – in practice, no policy can be proposed without his agreement. He also has control over the assigning of Commission portfolios, an argument perhaps against the Prime Minister’s decision to fight Juncker until the bitter end.

But around matters of treaty change, the balance of powers, boosting the role of national parliaments and keeping the Single Market rather than the euro at the heart of the EU, the Commission president’s role is rather subjugated to that of the Council.