I assumed office to bring the EU to a point from which there is no going back. Instead, I am having to unwind the EU to a certain extent.

I'm not deaf and the Commission isn't operating in a parallel world of legal texts.

Here in Brussels, we did everything to accommodate David Cameron's concerns. My collaborators and I personally spent countless days and nights negotiating an agreement that was fair toward the United Kingdom and toward the other 27 Member States. I was then very surprised to see that this settlement played no role whatsoever in the campaign in the United Kingdom. At the same time it is hardly surprising.

I have changed the focus of the work of my Commission so that we no longer concern ourselves with trivial details and concentrate on the key issues instead. By doing that, we met a large number of the legitimate demands made by the British people. The Commission really did do everything it could to create the conditions for a positive campaign.

I was never presented with the details as far as the collective bargaining system is Greece. I am in favor of a normal system without giving the labour minister the right to extend the results to extend the result of the collective bargaining to the whole of the real economy. The government has to make sure that the results will not harm the situation of small and medium enterprises.

The problem is: When two governments or institutions in Europe hold differing opinions, it is immediately a crisis.

The Greek nation has to be respected. I am not in the camp of those who openly want to humiliate Greece.