Good bilateral relations are vital to effective decision-making in the EU. France and Germany, working in tandem, have for many years acted as a motor of integration, but few other countries have actively sought to build up good bilateral relations on a systematic basis. However, since the 1998 'step change' initiative, the UK has been trying to do just this. This paper examines these efforts to enhance bilateral cooperation, aimed at improving policy-making at the European level, particularly in the areas of defence, economic policy and internal security.