The simplified treaty and relaunching Europe

After two years of paralysis and doubt, the European Union has been relaunched. The agreement reached at the European Council of 21 and 22 June is doubly good news.

First, as to substance: to say the least, the main innovations contained in the draft Constitution have been retained. Nearly all the institutional and legal changes in the treaty signed on 29 October 2004 have been incorporated in the conclusions of 22 June relating to the ‘amending treaty’. And this time the consensus on parliamentary ratification wherever possible offers a solid guarantee that there will not be another ‘ratification accident’. Indeed, the new treaty should apply as from June 2009, the date of the next European elections. If we keep to that schedule, we will almost make up the time lost by the failed referendums in France and the Netherlands.

Secondly, as to attitude: it was a long time since top European leaders had embraced the future of the Union as they did at the June solstice meeting. A German Chancellor both skilful and determined, a dynamic new French President tirelessly serving the common cause, the Prime Ministers of Spain, Italy, the UK, Luxembourg and the Netherlands, all took part in this team effort. Meanwhile the Czech Republic was helping to persuade Poland. Aside from all the media hysteria, it is an encouraging picture and it augurs well not just for agreement on its institutions but for the political relaunching of Europe.

Like the Constitutional Treaty, the Reform Treaty endeavours to remedy the three weaknesses of the Union, by establishing:

– an effective decision-making system, abandoning the unanimity rule in almost all cases, in favour of qualified majority agreement among Member States. The concession to the Poles does not relate to that vital issue but to the date when the new method of calculating each State’s respective voting rights will enter into force. The current system, which over-represents the small and medium-sized States, will apply until 2014.

– specific Union leaders, in place of national leaders who are regarded as governing Europe in their spare time. There will be a full-time President of the European Council, a High Representative for the Common Foreign and Security Policy and a President of the European Commission, henceforth elected democratically.

– an irreproachable democratic foundation. Henceforth, the decision-makers at European level will be clearly identified and elected for that purpose, and that purpose alone, by the citizens themselves. The European Parliament will exercise full legislative power on a par with the Council of Ministers and will have the final say on budgetary matters. Henceforth, it will elect the President of the Commission. That means that if the European political parties get themselves organised here, announcing in advance the name of their candidate for the post, the Commission President will actually be elected by the representatives of Europe’s 500 million citizens, like the prime minister of a parliamentary system.

This is not a reform, it is a revolution: at last the citizens will take power in Europe! If all goes well, it will happen in spring 2009, in time for the next European elections.

Alain Lamassoure, 24 June 2007