Charcuterie, lapin aux herbes, dessert ou fromage, reduced from €18 to €16. In a comic application of the thesis that the route to a Frenchman's heart is through his stomach, the European Union will this week be asked to give approval to Jacques Chirac's plan to reduce value added tax on lunch. The patron of my favourite country restaurant could knock €2 off the price of his menu and still retain a few cents for himself. The plan has been around for years but suddenly seems urgent: France's referendum on the European constitutional treaty is less than three weeks away.

I doubt if this gesture will sway the grumpy villagers. The most likely result on May 29 is that a Yes vote from the Paris region will just offset discontent in rural France, but it looks close. Yet a defeat for the constitution in France would probably be the best outcome for Europe. It would certainly be the best outcome for Britain.