Jospin sets date for EU speech

Paris - The French Prime Minister, Mr Lionel Jospin, will give a keynote speech next Monday setting out his government's future…

Paris - The French Prime Minister, Mr Lionel Jospin, will give a keynote speech next Monday setting out his government's future vision of the European Union, his office said. The long-awaited speech will break the silence from Paris that has followed proposals for a Europe based on stronger Brussels institutions outlined by Chancellor Gerhard Schroder earlier this month.

Officials in Mr Jospin's Socialist Party have said they want EU reforms to focus more on introducing left-wing policies than the long-term institutional overhaul Berlin has put forward.