The Lisbon treaty will come into force, at long last, on December 1 after the Czech constitutional court this week abruptly dismissed the third appeal against the treaty by a group of recalcitrant senators. At the same time, Vaclav Klaus, the Czech president, signed the ratification instrument and pronounced the end of Czech sovereignty. He was, as he had hoped to be, the last nationalist standing.

What bought off Mr Klaus was the decision of the European Council the week before to allow the Czech Republic to sign up to Protocol 30 to the Treaty of Lisbon. This is usually misrepresented as being a British opt-out from the Charter of Fundamental Rights. In fact it is nothing of the kind.