Malta to hold onto its Commissioner - Gonzi

EU leaders yesterday evening started a crucial two-day summit meeting in Brussels to discuss the recent blow to the EU's future by the Irish vote on the Lisbon Reform Treaty.

Although a clear way forward to this 'impasse' is not expected by the end of the meeting, it is almost certain that the 27 EU leaders will reiterate their position to push forward with the ratification process, possibly by the end of this year and to give some more time to the Irish government to solve this hitch.

"The ball is in the Irish court. This problem has to be solved by Ireland although the EU will consider some 'sweeteners' such as a possible protocol which clarifies some issues that were crucial in the Irish 'No' campaign. However it is still too early to decide the way forward," EU diplomats said.

Malta yesterday stressed its position that the Irish referendum has to be respected. Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi said Malta's position is to try to help out to solve the issue, 'as soon as possible'.

"First of all, it is very important to stress that the decision taken by the Irish electorate has to be respected. This was a democratic decision taken within the rules of the EU. The Irish said 'No' and we have to respect that fully.

"At the same time, we think that the process of ratification should continue to move forward while giving more time to the Irish to come to terms with the result and come up with a solution."

Due to the Irish 'No', Malta stands to lose not only its sixth seat at the European Parliament but also the certainty of having a Commissioner appointed in the next Commission due by the middle of next year.

According to the Nice Treaty, which will remain in force until it is superseded by the new treaty, the composition of the EU executive will have to be reduced from the current number of 27 commissioners - one for each member state.

The Nice Treaty clearly stipulates that a ceiling on the number of Commissioners will be imposed once the Union has 27 member states, reached last January through the accession of Bulgaria and Romania.

At that point, according to the Nice Treaty, the Council will have to take a unanimous decision on the exact number of Commissioners, which must be less than 27.

The Treaty also states that the nationality of the Commissioners will then be determined by a system of rotation that will be fair to all countries.

Asked about this possibility, Dr Gonzi steered away from broaching the issue saying only that Malta will hold on to its commissioner.

Sources close to the government said Malta would never accept to surrender its right to appoint a Commissioner in the next Commission because of the non-ratification of the Lisbon Treaty.

There is also a legal issue as the EU did not decide as stipulated in the Nice Treaty on this issue as it was assuming that the Lisbon Treaty will be ratified by the date of the appointment of the next Commission, scheduled for the middle of next year.

Apart from this, the decision will have to be unanimous and it is hard to think that any member state will give up its commissioner because of the negative Irish vote.

The current spike in food and oil prices was also discussed by EU leaders yesterday with the Commission suggesting some mitigating measures to lessen the impact on inflation which is currently at an all-time high in the EU.

"Our alternative energy plan, which will include measures and projects in the wind, solar and photovoltaic sectors should be ready by the end of this year. We are trying to solve some technical problems to be able to start moving as fast as possible to develop an alternative energy sector.

"I have already said that a revision in the surcharge is inevitable and we should be in a position to decide on this issue in the coming days.

"We are now paying much more for oil than we used to six months ago.

"This will have to be reflected in the price we pay for the energy we use."