19/03/2002 (Agence Europe) - Presenting the results of the European Council of Barcelona on Monday at the House of Commons, Tony Blair stressed that, before the summit, his government had taken initiatives with "no less than seven countries: the Netherlands, Germany, Sweden, Denmark, Italy, Belgium and Poland". Five years ago, "such alliances would have been unthinkable", he said, stressing that his government's constructive commitment policy is the right one. It allows the United Kingdom to be at the heart of Europe, of the defence economy and institutional reform. (The same day, The Times published extracts from Statecraft, a work by Margaret Thatcher, recommending "British withdrawal from all the entanglements of a common foreign and security policy and a reassertion of control of our trade policies". In her view, "the rest of the EU needs us more than we need them".