"....For �2.5bn Mr Blair will be sacrificing at least four political goals that seemed important to the UK. The first is future enlargement of the EU. A union without a constitution and a budget will almost certainly delay the enlargement talks with Turkey that were scheduled to start during the upcoming British EU presidency. With rising opposition to Turkish EU membership in France and Germany, I would not be surprised if the EU now closed its doors to Turkey. Nor would I bet at this stage on whether the already agreed enlargement to bring in Romania and Bulgaria will go ahead as scheduled. The extent of the continental European backlash against enlargement is still underestimated in the UK...."
More:FT.com / Home UK - Blair's demands have damaged Europe
