The driving force behind the liberal counter-offensive in Europe has been a reaction against irresponsibility.

Contrary to what people say, my wife never turned me away from the presidency. She told me to reflect on it and do what I wanted.

The European model is in danger if we obliterate the principle of personal responsibility.

Therefore one should speak at the same time of national citizenship and wider European citizenship.

We will have to create an avant-garde.... We could have a Union for the enlarged Europe, and a Federation for the avant-garde.

If you don't have collective agreements between unions and employers, governments have to legislate more.

The problem with a purely collective system is not only that it requires economic growth, and the right sort of demographic trends, but that it prevents people thinking about their futures in a responsible way.