Ireland's second attempt might give Malta permanent Commissioner

The chances of Malta having a permanent EU Commissioner is closer to becoming a reality as Ireland is this week expected to announce holding a second referendum on the Lisbon Treaty.

Irish Prime Minister Brian Cowen is expected to tell his 26 EU counterparts, meeting in Brussels at the end of this week for their traditional end-of-year summit, that Ireland will be ready to consult its electorate once again next autumn.

Ireland will, however, ask the other EU member states to accept a number of changes to the current treaty, particularly a concession that every member state should have a right to nominate one of its citizens as a member of the powerful EU executive.

According to an analysis carried out by the Irish government following the failed referendum on the new treaty last year, the loss of an Irish Commissioner was one of the main sticking points.

Sources close to the EU Presidency have confirmed there is a strong possibility that the Irish request will be accepted by the other member states in order to 'save' the Treaty.

If accepted, it will also guarantee Malta a Commissioner on the EU executive for the years to come, something which is important for a small country which is normally under-represented in other areas of EU institutions.

According to the text of the Lisbon Treaty, already ratified by most member states, as from November 2014, "the European Commission shall consist of a number of members corresponding to two thirds of the number of member states, unless the European Council, acting unanimously decides to alter this number."

This means that all EU member states, including Malta, will not have a Commissioner for one term every 15 years. A Commission term lasts five years.

Under the current rules, dictated by the Nice Treaty, Malta is in a worse position as it has no guarantee that it will have a Commissioner from the next Commission, which is expected to be appointed in November.

In fact, the Commission would have fewer members than member states. The European Council would not have the power to change this unless it holds a complicated inter-governmental conference, which is unlikely to happen in the short term.

"This effectively means that if the Lisbon Treaty is not ratified before November, we have a big problem with the composition of the new Commission," the EU sources said.

Government sources told The Sunday Times that Malta is inclined to agree with the Irish suggestion: "If the Irish feel that they should have a Commissioner it is a justified feeling."

The impasse over the Lisbon Treaty will also be discussed by Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi in a series of bilateral meetings. On Tuesday, Dr Gonzi will hold talks with Czech Prime Minister Mirek Topolanek who will be taking over the EU Presidency in January.

On Wednesday, a day before the summit, Dr Gonzi is to hold separate meetings in Brussels with Belgian Prime Minister Yves Leterme and European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso.