02/11/2005 (Agence Europe) - Issue 72 of La Lettre de Confrontations Europe (only available in French) includes a dossier on 'L'Europe vaut bien un budget'. In his article 'La bataille historique du budget europeen', former MEP Philippe Herzog (President of Confrontations Europe) said all true europ3ans know that budget solidarity is needed for the EU's cohesion and economic health and for this reason, France could play Tony Blair at his own game with two proposals - increasing the competitiveness chapter of the Juncker plan, and preparing for an overall reform of the budget for 2010. Herzog said spending should fund vital common policies for making a success of the growth strategy, with income provided by 'own resources' (company taxation and VAT) to remove the root of conflicts, namely calculating net contributions. He said France should also argue that a proper budget is vital to preserve cohesion in the eurozone, which will later grow to include twenty-two countries.