It has come down to the final hours of discussion and most headlines say the French voters will say "non" to the EU constitution. This piece in the Times quotes one leader as saying , 'the thing is lost ".

Some are predicting doom for the EU if France says no. Personally I don't think it will be that gloomy. Business will go on as usual and they will work out another agreement. The goal of European union has come too far to be thrown off by what the French say on this one day. Polls show that the Netherlands is likely to say no as well on June 1st when voters there have their say. It is likely that French President Jacques Chirac will be the biggest loser according to this article in the Financial Times.

If the French say no, Chirac may want to follow the recent example of German Chancellor Gerhard Schroder and call for early elections to let the people decide who will rule them. For more background on the possible implications of this vote read my article in the May issue of World News and Prophecy, Which Way Europe?