All in all, Mr Duff’s cheery view of an MEP’s life makes some sense. But here is a paradox: it is also rare. Too many MEPs are variously grandees enjoying a well-paid retirement, young thrusters gaining experience before breaking into national politics or political figures enduring exile to Euroland after falling foul of their party bosses. True, some are knowledgeable and diligent, shepherding big laws through the parliament’s committees (where the real power lies). Supporters point to such pillars of legislation as the 2006 REACH directive on chemicals, which they say was “rescued” by MEPs when early drafts were blocked by squabbling governments.

Such star MEPs have more influence over the lives of European citizens and businesses than does any national parliamentarian, claims a senior Belgian MEP. “But the frustration for an MEP is that you can do an amazing European job and not get any media attention.” This frustration is acute at election time, when MEPs sally forth in search of voters, only to be reminded that the public knows little of who they are or what they do—beyond a vague memory that MEPs enjoy lavish pay and perks and waste huge sums shuttling monthly from Brussels to Strasbourg.

To federalist types, the answer is more Europe, meaning the formation of high-profile, pan-European parties that would capture public attention, perhaps by nominating their preferred candidates to be president of the European Commission.Yet dreams of cross-border politics stumble on the fact that left-right divisions mean different things in different countries. To take one example, ostensibly left-wing Nordic social democrats are more gung-ho about globalisation than are many Mediterranean conservatives. The big “centre-right” and “socialist” blocks that dominate the parliament are artificial alliances, with shallow political roots.

... contd.