When Mr Emmanuel Macron was elected as France's president in May 2017, a sigh of relief could be heard throughout Europe. With Mr Macron, who had defeated right-wing candidate Marine Le Pen in the run-off, Europe would have roughly five years to get its act together - and to protect itself against the forces of populism and narcissism.

This narrative got even stronger after Germany's Dr Angela Merkel was re-elected a little later that year. Five years should be enough to eventually reform the European Union, the Euro and European institutions, the thinking went.