The head of the European Union's executive Commission appealed to French voters to back the EU's new constitution in a referendum on May 29 and said rejecting it would have negative economic consequences.
"I make an appeal in the name of the values which are the values of France and Europe for a 'Yes", a sign of confidence, because that sign of confidence in Europe is a sign of confidence in the future of France," Jose Manuel Durao Barroso told Europe 1 radio.