“People were told they would see a highly important and influential global political figure.”

The claim — a paraphrase of Nigel Farage's February 24, 2010 statement to Herman Van Rompuy that "We were told that when we had a president, we'd see a giant global political figure" — is accurate as a description of the publicly created expectations around the new permanent President of the European Council position. When the Lisbon Treaty created the position, its stated purpose included giving the EU "greater visibility on the world stage" and representing the EU externally (Congressional Research Service; Council of the EU website). Extensive public discussion followed about whether the first officeholder would be a "global figure" or a low-key technocrat. The Congressional Research Service noted that "Some had envisioned this position as a driver of EU policy, a heavyweight presidential figure who would play a highly visible international role." The BBC reported that "Some countries want a high-profile figure to represent the EU on the world stage." The Times described the debate as being about "whether the person appointed should be a global figure or hide away in an office in Brussels." The leading candidate for the "strong president" vision was Tony Blair, a globally recognized figure, whose candidacy was promoted by figures like Gordon Brown and Nicolas Sarkozy. NBC News, Foreign Policy, and Politico all reported extensively on this "global figure vs. chairman" debate. France 24 reported that the appointments were "intended to bolster the EU's standing and help it to match the rise of emerging powers such as China." While there was a competing vision — smaller countries preferred a consensus-building chairman rather than a global heavyweight, and the eventual choice of Van Rompuy reflected that — the claim is about what people "were told" or led to expect. There was indeed widespread public discourse and expectation, promoted by prominent political figures and media coverage, that the new president would be a significant global political figure. Farage's "we were told" is a fair characterization of these publicly expressed expectations. Sources: - The Guardian, "Ukip's Nigel Farage tells Van Rompuy: You have the charisma of a damp rag," https://www.theguardian.com/world/2010/feb/25/nigel-farage-herman-van-rompuy-damp-rag - Congressional Research Service, "The European Union's Reform Process: The Lisbon Treaty" (Feb 22, 2010), https://www.everycrsreport.com/files/20100222_RS21618_c2fbaff07494411fb6e0c76aea4cd177ea0f29e7.pdf - Congressional Research Service, "The European Union's Reform Process: The Lisbon Treaty" (Nov 9, 2009), https://www.everycrsreport.com/files/20091109_RS21618_2e074065241ae5f4cc9f8f5c318094d130eccd79.pdf - BBC News, "Blair EU bid 'an act of vanity,'" http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/7232084.stm - The Times, "World Agenda: no role for democracy in search for Europe president," https://www.thetimes.com/travel/destinations/europe-travel/germany/berlin/world-agenda-no-role-for-democracy-in-search-for-europe-president-jf00ghqdc3n - NBC News, "Blair for EU president? Maybe too famous," https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna33534894 - Foreign Policy, "Tony Blair's bid for EU Presidency faces growing opposition," https://foreignpolicy.com/2009/07/01/tony-blairs-bid-for-eu-presidency-faces-growing-opposition/ - France 24, "Van Rompuy set to bring quiet diplomacy to EU top job," https://www.france24.com/en/20091120-van-rompuy-set-bring-quiet-diplomacy-eu-top-job - Council of the EU, "Shaping the EU as we know it," https://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/lisbon-treaty/ - Reuters, "Special Report: Europe's man in the middle," https://www.reuters.com/article/world/special-report-europes-man-in-the-middle-idUSTRE7B615T/