Everybody knew that when the French under N. Sarkozy assumed Presidency of the Council strange things would happen. Indeed, Aigrain mocked it in his blog. Sarkozy intervened at Commissioner Reding or precisely at the Commission president not to accept Amendment 138 of the Trautmann report (Telecom Package) which was voted by Parliament. The Sarkozy « short circuit » didn’t succeed. Good for constitutional reasons.
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This version of the amendment was adopted by the European Parliament in an open vote with a large majority of 573 votes in favour and 74 votes against. The European Commission respects this democratic decision of the European Parliament. In the Commission’s view, this amendment is an important restatement of key legal principles inherent in the legal order of the European Union, especially of citizens’ fundamental rights.
http://rebentisch.blogspot.com/2008/10/reding-fences-off-french-presidency.html