Commentary

You know age is catching up with you, the more weddings and funerals you attend. At weddings, not only are you merely a guest, but wedding meetings, planning and all other protocol gradually start taking more of a central than peripheral role as the years go by.

A few months ago, 25 of the 27 members of the European Union solemnly signed a treaty that committed them to enshrining tough deficit limits in their national constitutions.