Ireland's new leader to face EU's EPP heavies in Helsinki. Clegg pushes for Muslim EU.

The Irish Times notes that the tussle over forming a coaltion in that country now centres around the appointment of a finance minister. Elsewhere it makes plain that the real economic outcome for the euro devastated country will be settled in Helsinki in the coming hours, read here.

Nick Clegg, presumably wishing to avoid the humiliation heaped on his party at Barnsley Central last evening (where his party was pushed down to sixth place in a Westminster By-election), chose instead to make a fautuous speech to his EU non-entities, laughingly gathered to discuss Libya etc.' where they agreed to hold a summit on 11th March, as that was an already scheduled meeting date on other matters,  EurActiv reports, linked here:

Speaking alongside Barroso, UK Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg, who later met EU High Representative Catherine Ashton, also struck a geopolitical note in his statement. Building on his country's support for Turkey's EU membership, he went much further than Barroso, emphasising the role that Turkey might play as role model for Arab countries to follow and as living proof that democracy and Islam are not incompatible.

"As a Muslim majority country, a NATO member and a country firmly committed to the path to EU membership, and a state with a vibrant multi-party democracy, [Turkey] provides a valuable example for other societies. Turkey's warm relations in the region offer benefits in terms of achieving the openness and respect for human rights that we all support," Clegg said.

Cameron and Clegg must surely soon be made to realise that they may be big fish in the thoroughly polluted, stagnant and stinking pond that is British politics, but emerging from such waters they will not be fit company for their more respectable foreign opposite numbers, working as national statesmen and women in attempting to resolve the serious issues facing the world.