Are the Tories blackmailing the EU behind the scenes?

OpenEurope reports:

Sarkozy wants impromptu EU summit to 'crown' Blair EU President next month

Under the headline "Sarkozy demands ex-PM Blair's 'coronation'", the Sun reports that French President Nicolas Sarkozy is pressing for a special EU summit to be convened to appoint Tony Blair as the EU's first President as soon as the Lisbon Treaty is ratified. Plans to select him at the EU leaders' summit in Brussels next week have been frustrated by Czech President Vaclav Klaus, due to his refusal to sign the Treaty, which creates the post. But EU leaders are confident Mr Klaus will finally approve it by early next month.

The Mail quotes a diplomatic source saying, "Blair is looking like the clear favourite and Sarkozy wants to get it settled quickly."

The Times reports that Shadow Foreign Secretary William Hague has been conducting a behind-the-scenes campaign to convince European ambassadors that Tony Blair would be a bad choice for EU President.

Hague's spokesman said: "Mr Hague wanted to leave the ambassadors in no doubt that the Conservative Party is opposed to the appointment of Tony Blair as president of the European Council and [that] it would only underline the lack of accountability and legitimacy involved in the creation of the position in the first place".

Ah, now this is interesting.  Might the Tories be offering the EU an ultimatum along the lines of make Blair President and we'll offer a refendum on the treaty?

The Economist's Charlemagne blog notes that German Chancellor Angela Merkel "is the key swing voter in the contest for president" and that "a pair of (relatively) senior German Christian Democrat [Merkel's party] members of the European Parliament have co-sponsored a petition denouncing Tony Blair as a possible president of the European Council."

If the Tories are threatening to give us a refendum on Blair's coronation, Merkel is a threat to us.

Reuters reports that four German MEPs and one Luxembourg MEP yesterday sponsored the petition which requested excluding Blair from the candidates for EU President. The MEPs based their petition on the fact that the UK is not member of the eurozone, the Schengen area, and has 'opted out' from the Charter of Fundamental Rights. The petition requires a simple majority in the EP in order to be an official declaration of the Parliament, although it would be non-binding.

Meanwhile, EUobserver reports that the Swedish EU Presidency is still hoping to fix the line-up of the new Commission and the shape of the EU's future diplomatic service at next week's summit. Swedish Minister for European Affairs Cecilia Malmstrom said the Presidency was preparing a report to be presented to EU leaders at the summit, which will include an update on the Czech situation and proposals for the set-up of the new EU diplomatic corps.

Unfortunately, this might be the worst outcome. The Swedish policos appear to be rabid eurofanatics.

Update:

Meanwhile (my emphasis):

The eGov monitor reports that the Northern Ireland Assembly voted for a motion on Tuesday by 47-19 in favour of the UK holding a referendum on the Lisbon Treaty, and calling on "those parties aspiring to form the incoming Government of the United Kingdom to give an unequivocal commitment to hold, within a twelve month period from assuming office in 2010, a binding referendum on the Lisbon Treaty that is unconditional and unrelated to how other member states choose to vote, and the result of which will not be held in abeyance pending a further referendum on the subject."

Follow the Northern Ireland Assembly debate proceedings here.