WHAT a delightful little dance EU competition commissioner Karel Van Miert and Britain's new trade and industry secretary Margaret Beckett are engaged in over the proposed megamerger of British Airways and American Airlines.

The basic issue is whether or not the European Commission has the right to approve or veto the merger, and therefore impose conditions before it can go ahead.

In the old days, with the Tories in power, it was a straightforward battle of good versus evil, with the Conservatives behaving just like the xenophobic oafs the Commission believed them to be. Now, with New Labour in the driving seat, journalists in Brussels are being briefed that Mr Van Miert's "optimistic negotiations are now gaining pace".

But the New Labour minister didn't mention whether or not she accepted the Commission's right to decide. Some say she may merely be keeping her powder dry.