It all started when the European Union discovered that the sun didn’t look the same everywhere in Europe. In Portugal, it glowed a rich orange; in Poland, it shone a pale yellow. Tourists were confused, weather apps didn’t know what to do, and paint companies panicked. Soon, lobbyists and politicians demanded action, because the European single market required harmonised sunlight. And so began the great technocratic quest to regulate the colour of the sun. Committees met, experts debated, and Member States argued over whether their skies were ‘mild apricot’ or ‘burnt mango’.

Will the European Union find the perfect compromise and put the sun into law?

Absurd? Absolutely. But behind the satire, this story follows every step of a real policymaking process, revealing how the European Union really functions, or sometimes malfunctions. From Commission inter-service groups to Parliament shadow meetings, from obscure Coreper negotiations to late-night trilogues where every comma becomes a battlefield, this is an invitation to explore the world of EU policymaking with a dose of humour.