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Description of Accidental Constitution

Peter Norman's "Accidental Constitution" occupies a unique position in recent writings about the European Union. Fluent, witty and accessible, this highly acclaimed book, published by EuroComment of Brussels, remains the only authoritative account of the European Convention and the controversial draft Constitution that it produced. Peter Norman has now taken the story of the EU's "Accidental Constitution" further. Subtitled, "The Making of Europe's Constitutional Treaty", the new edition explains the text that must now be ratified by all the Union's 25 member states. It sheds light on the complex political and constitutional issues that the EU's leaders set out to solve and explains why the subsequent negotiations among the member states came close to disaster before ending in agreement. Knowing how the European Union's constitution came about is crucial to understanding a text that could have a profound effect on the lives of 500 million European citizens for decades to come.
This book, written by a former bureau chief of the "Financial Times" in Brussels, draws on a wealth of documentary evidence, the insights gained from talking to key participants in the creation of the EU's constitutional treaty and the author's expert knowledge of EU affairs. Aimed at the lay reader as well as the specialist, the book is essential reading for all who want to understand the European Union of today. It is a tale of people and politics. It is also a tale of the unexpected. That is why the book is called the "Accidental Constitution".

Title Information

ISBN:

9789077110089

Pages:

332 pages

Format:

Paperback

Product Code:

24953

Publisher:

EuroComment

Published:

16/05/2005

Edition:

2nd Revised edition

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About Peter Norman

Peter Norman is uniquely qualified to explain the European Convention. He attended all the Convention sessions from its launch on February 28 2002, got to know many Convention members, and reported on the Convention's development in detail for EuroComment of Brussels. He brings to the book deep knowledge and wide-ranging experience of the European Union, gained during 35 years as a political and economic journalist. Peter Norman was a foreign correspondent for a total of 22 years, based at various times in Frankfurt, Bonn and Brussels for Reuters, the Times of London, the Wall Street Journal-Europe and the Financial Times. The most recent of his three assignments to Brussels was as the Financial Times Brussels Bureau Chief and Chief Correspondent between November 1998 and March 2002. He currently lives in London where he contributes leaders to the Financial Times.