Actually not the EU but the Commission.

In the past, the EU was largely ruled by concensus, and debates sometimes raged on into mind-numbing pedantry just to make sure everybody was on board. Mrs Thatcher of course was among those who used that shamelessly to carve out special deals.

But for all the faults of the old style, the new style based on threats and bullying is far worse. Too much consensus can be a handicap, but too much authoritarianism is outright dangerous.

But that said, and for the reasons you state, this will probably come to nothing. So why is the EU sabre rattling over an empty threat? It's just one massive power trip. Maybe it's like in pre Bresit days. We can do what we want, they say. People will never get so fed up that they will want to leave.

Leaning from recent history is not really their thing.