They accused each of their larger partners of jostling for greater influence, by attempting to increase their own voting weights under increased Qualified Majority Voting. The impasse was soon resolved, and the walkout forestalled, when the votes were reshuffled. At one point the dispute resembled the anti-globalisation riot, which took place outside the conference hall at the beginning of the summit.

As a result the smaller states gained additional votes from the larger states. The weighting is usually worked out according to a member state's population size. This would have left the Big Three, France Germany and Britain in the driving seat. Without the ability to veto proposals made by the larger states, the smaller ones could have found themselves effectively disenfranchised.

Before the summit the writing appeared on the wall. The president of the European Commission, Romano Prodi, gave stark warnings about a possible deadlock. Mr. Prodi saw national vetoes as a major stumbling block. According to BBC News Online, he wanted a "treaty with added value." Near the end of the IGC, he commented that the agreement had only gone half-way to achieving the reforms required for enlargement.

The French, for example, sought to maintain a veto to block foreign trade in the service sector. France wants to keep its right to protect its own language and culture from an invasion of Anglophonie, namely Hollywood films. Romano Prodi felt disappointed by each member states' attempts to hold onto their vetoes. With the expansion of the European Union, towards the former Eastern Bloc, now set by the new treaty; Mr. Prodi had hoped to streamline the Union's decision-making process.

Romano Prodi heavily criticised their actions. This includes Tony Blair's principal "red line" on policy areas like social security, tax, immigration, and defence. Prodi said: "Anyone who sees Europe merely as a clearing house to approach when necessary and to stay away from when it does not suit them, or when they have already got a great deal from it, is not just making an error of historical analysis, but is cheating future generations."

The squabbles shook France's residing presidency of the EU, and subsequently the host of the proceedings, Jacques Chirac. President Chirac of France was caught off-guard, particularly by the rebel small member states. For once it wasn't 'Britain against the rest,' because Belgium assumed this role. President Chirac was accused of wasting time, and the disputes made the summit the longest in the European Union's history. The negotiations dragged on, and passed the initial deadline of 9th December.

A settlement finally arrived in the early hours of Monday 11th December. Most of the reporters sent to cover the summit by international media organisations had slept through the proceedings. They had found it impossible to keep up as the IGC dragged on. President Chirac's political career, according some analysts, was put on the line when he faced criticism over the way he had personally handled the negotiations.

Yet the results of the Nice summit were welcomed by the Eastern European countries, who aim to join the European Union. Some confidently predicted that they could now accede to the EU by 2003. Enlargement is expected to increase the number of member states from 15 to around 30. Therefore the larger member states have been forced to give up two commissioners each. However, the summit failed to restrict the size of the 20 member Commission.

Reformers were dismayed that an agreement had come so close on this issue. Instead, a rotational system will be introduced in 2005, similar to the one used for the presidency of the EU. The minimal success of reforming the EU's institutions, has led to speculation that there would need to be another IGC in 2004. It seems therefore that the aspiring members from the former Iron Curtain countries are perhaps too confident. Even so there were shouts of 'betrayal' across the European Union.

The British Prime Minister, Tony Blair, faced accusation of taking Britain a step further into a European Superstate. William Hague, the leader of Britain's Conservative Party made these accusations, backing up the arguments of many Eurosceptics. The Daily Telegraph's headline read: "Blair sold us short in Nice, says Hague." In contrast The Guardian reflected Blair's triumphalism: "Blair holds on to UK's key vetoes."

Even after the summit, the Rapid Reaction Force or what many termed the "Euro-army" remains a hot potato. Talks with NATO recently broke down, leading the French to insist that a separate command structure is now "unstoppable." The future of NATO, many believe is now being put into question.

Coupled with the loss of 30 national vetoes, mainly concerning the free market, it's no wonder Tony Blair is accused of treading carefully on the euro. Yet he continues to refute these accusations made chiefly by disillusioned Europhiles seeking Government leadership on EMU.

William Hague stated that, if the Tories won power after next year's General Election in Britain, he would not ratify the treaty. Mr. Hague went as far as to predict a public backlash against the British Government. Romano Prodi's summation of the Nice summit to the European Parliament could add to this difficulty. He said: "I would appeal to everyone to remember that the final aim of the Nice Summit was and remains the reunification of Europe. The new Millennium has given us an unprecedented opportunity to bind together the countries of our continent into a wide area of peace, stability and greater economic potential. "

Prodi Continued: " Nice is one step in this direction. As a step, it was a shorter step than we had hoped to make, or indeed could have made. But we are moving in the right direction, and I would therefore ask you to lend us your support."

Clearly, as a result of Nice, this ambition is harder to achieve than expected. There are also fears that without public support the European project will collapse. Not everyone, even in Eastern Europe, sees membership of the EU as such a great opportunity. A recent BBC television programme discovered that the enthusiasm for 'ever closer union' is largely contained within the EU institutions themselves. So perhaps Tony Blair should listen to calls for a referendum on Nice.

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