El País, 11 December 2009

On the occasion of the first European summit on 10 December, "Herman Van Rompuy surprised European leaders with a pragmatic approach, which aims to simplify the functioning of the Union," reports El País. The new EU President wants "a drastic reduction in the number of participants in meetings of the European Council," and greater transparency in the reporting of the deliberations of Europe's heads of state, which will put an end to communiques that are "long, bureaucratic and incomprehensible." These should be replaced by "three- or four-page documents that can be understood by everyone." Starting on 1st January, Spain will take on the first rotating presidency of the EU to be regulated by the Lisbon Treaty, which allows the agenda for meetings to be set by the permanent Council President. However, as Van Rompuy has yet to form his team, and in view of the fact that the new Commission will not be active until the end of January or early February, “the role played by Spain's Prime Minister Zapatero is likely to be more significant than it will be in the future,” concludes the Madrid daily.