I think that we must come together progressively, with the British, the Germans, the Spanish, the Italians and with the new members of the European Union, we must make an effort to forge closer links.

We shall say clearly that any symbol conspicuously displaying religious affiliation in school is prohibited.

When I see the cultural diversity that exists today, I feel that we must defend it, and we need Europe, because otherwise we are going to live in a society with a single model, the Anglo-American model.

I think that the proposed constitution is one of the European legal documents with the strongest social dimension I have seen since I began following European issues.

It's a different outlook, and one that I understand. When you are a former member of the Warsaw Pact, when you have lived behind the Berlin Wall, when you have experienced the communist systems that existed in these countries, for them, the West represents hope.

But the Republic has its rules and it must not tolerate any abuse of them.

Europe started out with six countries; three small countries and three large countries.