Optimism rises over EU's future, even as debate rages on

JEAN Claude Juncker gave his annual state-of-the-union address on Wednesday, asserting that the "wind is back in Europe's sails". After a bad 2016 for the continent, not least with the UK's European Union (EU) referendum, the European Commission president's upbeat speech reflects the fact that many leaders across the continent have an unexpected spring in their step following a spate of positive political and economic news in recent months.

The eurozone economies have recorded improved growth; voters in France and the Netherlands have rejected far-right populists, and the euro has recently hit eight-year highs against the pound.

The contrast with only half a year ago is stark, when the p…