Buttiglione clash tests delicate balance of EU

As tests of nerve go, the political drama about to unfold at the European Parliament in Strasbourg carries particularly high stakes. On one side is José Manuel Barroso, European Commission president-in-waiting, attempting to win a majority in the European Parliament on 27 October 2004, allowing his new 24-member team to start work on 1 November 2004. On the other is the 732-member assembly, flexing its muscles and trying to assert its authority over the EU executive. Neither side shows any sign of blinking.