Those who thought the road to monetary union would be a smooth one will have to think again. The French government has started a nice row, with its decision to back its central bank governor, Jean-Claude Trichet, as governor of the new EU central bank which will manage the single currency. The move took everyone by surprise.

Dutchman Wim Duisenberg, currently head of the European Monetary Institute, had been seen as a shoo-in for the job. From the point of view of the Germans, Duisenberg was almost one of their own, as a former governor of the Dutch central bank and thus manger of a currency which has acted as a surrogate deutschmark for years. And the other EU states had also seemed happy to support Duisenberg's candidacy.

But France, having lost a number of battles in the run-up to EMU, has now decided to take a stand. It is a move which signals a number of key battles lying ahead as the final move to the euro gets under way.