Brussels, 16/03/2010 (Agence Europe) - A telephone call from the British prime minister Gordon Brown to the Spanish prime minister, Rodríguez Zapatero, was all it took. On Tuesday 16 March 2010, the Spanish Presidency decided to withdraw the draft directive on hedge funds and alternative funds from the agenda of that day's ECOFIN Council. Despite the qualified majority rule (whereby countries can no longer veto such issues), Spain decided not to isolate the United Kingdom, where 80% of...