(8 Dec 2011)
1. Exterior of conference centre where German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Nicolas Sarkozy are to meet with heads of state and government from the centre-right European People's Party
2. Wide of media pen
3. Wide of security
4. Mid of flags
5. German Chancellor Angel Merkel arriving
6. French President Nicolas Sarkozy arriving
7. European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso getting out of car
8. SOUNDBITE (English) Jose Manuel Barroso, European Commission President:
"What I can tell you is the following: the summit that we are going to start tonight in Brussels is indeed a crucial one. What I expect of all heads of (indistinct phrase) government is that they don't come saying what they cannot do, but what they will do for Europe. All the world is watching us."
9. Cutaway of media
10. SOUNDBITE (English) Jose Manuel Barroso, European Commission President:
"It is extremely important that we all together, all European Union shows that the euro is irreversible that we are all standing supporting the euro and I believe this is possible, my appeal, my strong appeal to all (indistinct phrase) government is that to show this commitment to our common currency. I think this is indispensable and leadership is about making possible what is indispensable."
11. Barroso walks away
STORYLINE:
German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Nicolas Sarkozy hoped to rally fellow European conservatives on Thursday around their latest bid to save the euro currency from collapsing under the weight of huge state debt.
The duo arrived in Marseille to meet with heads of state and government from the centre-right European People's Party before moving on to Brussels for a crucial EU summit, with the 17-nation eurozone's fate in the balance.
The leaders will be looking to build support for their plan for eurozone nations to submit their national budgets to much greater scrutiny.
Ratings agency Standard & Poor's injected urgency into those talks by warning it may downgrade the bonds of all 27 EU nations, days after it threatened to downgrade most of the eurozone, including Germany.
The leaders' plan seeks to enshrine tougher budget oversight in the existing EU treaty or alternatively, by creating a new one for the 17 eurozone nations that others could opt in to.
It proposes automatic sanctions for breaking rules and a requirement to balance national budgets.
Speaking in Marseille, European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso said he expected leaders to come to the Brussels summit not "saying what they cannot do, but what they will do for Europe".
"All the world is watching us," Barroso added.
Markets have mostly risen since last week on hopes that an agreement among European governments on the Franco-German plan would pave the way for the European Central Bank to intervene more aggressively to support eurozone bond markets.

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