Angela Merkel, the German chancellor, has set the cat among Europe’s pigeons by suggesting at her party’s annual conference that political union could save the European project in its “toughest hour”. Germany would even be prepared to cede some national sovereignty in return for closer economic and political ties, she says.

If this was intended as a message to her domestic constituency in an attempt to win more room for manoeuvre in dealing with the eurozone crisis, it would be understandable.

But if Ms Merkel is serious in pushing for far-reaching treaty changes in the near term she risks dividing Europe at a time when it should be focusing on the more immediate issue of the sovereign debt crisis. It is perfectly legitimate for Germany to press for political union as a long-term objective. But many in Europe fear the consequences of reopening the question of institutional change at a time when the European Union is facing the biggest test of its existence. Enda Kenny, the Irish prime?minister, has said this would be “very challenging” to accept and implement for some countries