Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2007-06-06-Speech-3-025"
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"en.20070606.12.3-025"2
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".
Mr President, I wish to begin by thanking the rapporteurs, Mr Barón Crespo and Mr Brok, and the Committee on Constitutional Affairs for this report, and for your work, which adds a major contribution to this very crucial period that we are in. The Commission welcomes your report and shares its main thrust.
The Constitutional Treaty also provides a very good solution on how to involve the national parliaments and it strikes a good balance between the role of the national parliaments and that of the European Parliament.
The Commission also remains deeply attached to the binding nature of the Charter of Fundamental Rights and to the substantial innovations on the policies set out in the Constitutional Treaty.
There must be no dilution of the single market, but we are open to examining new ideas for developments in certain policy areas in order to face new or reinforce key policy challenges, such as sustainable development, migration or energy.
The Commission shares the view that the European Parliament should be closely associated with the coming Intergovernmental Conference, at least matching the involvement it enjoyed in the previous IGC. Together we should also continue intensively our efforts to engage citizens and civil society in an effective dialogue about the future of Europe. Together we ought to explain to citizens what is at stake and why a new Treaty settlement is necessary to make the Union capable of facing the challenges of the age of globalisation. This will be even more important in the crucial phase which will begin on the basis of the European Council decisions, and I look forward to working closely with you to make this a reality.
Two years after the launch of the reflection period, the world is still changing and the political context has kept changing. The European Union has been able to find a new consensus on some highly political dossiers and issues, such as agreeing a new financial package for the years to come.
However, the difficulties that the Constitutional Treaty was addressing have basically not been solved. The Union is still not able to speak with a single voice in the world arena. We still need to improve democracy, efficiency and the transparency of this Union. We have to ensure a better delivery on key policy areas such as migration or climate change. That is why we are deeply convinced that Treaty changes are still necessary.
We also believe that there is a strong need to communicate better with the citizens on a new Treaty review exercise. This exercise is not about building European construction for its own sake, but about being able to address the increasingly globalised political environment and deliver on policies that really matter to our citizens.
Moving towards a Treaty settlement will be the key issue of the European Council. The German Presidency has made a huge effort in the past months to build a new consensus among the Member States and the European institutions. We support those efforts and we hope that the European Council will be able to agree on the launch of a new intergovernmental conference.
However, we must be very careful: the Constitutional Treaty is a compromise which at this stage is difficult to improve but easy to unravel. Therefore, for new negotiations to be successful, the Intergovernmental Conference needs a to have a clear and stringent mandate and a clear goal in mind, i.e. a new Treaty to be in force before the 2009 European elections.
The Commission will continue to play a central part in reaching a solution. If an intergovernmental conference is to be launched, we will be ready to bring forward our opinion in early July. A new solution should be able to command a true and durable consensus. It should be able to strike a balance between the voices of those who have already ratified the Constitutional Treaty and those who have not.
However, keeping a high level of ambition is also essential. A lowest common denominator solution might bring short-term relief, but it could compound problems in the future. Simply introducing minor institutional changes in the Treaty of Nice will therefore not be sufficient.
The Constitutional Treaty was the fruit of a detailed examination by the Convention; it is the result of a careful compromise agreed by all the heads of state and government and endorsed by the European Parliament. As far as the substance is concerned, the major part of that work remains valid. The innovations introduced by the Constitutional Treaty are still pertinent and they need to be translated into reality. The Community method must be protected, including the Commission’s right of initiative. The single-pillar structure and the single legal personality are tangible instruments to enhance the Union’s capacity to act in a global world. Advances in qualified majority voting and, in general, the enhanced role of the European Parliament should not be questioned."@en1
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