Editorial

The maverick Czech president, Vaclav Klaus, will not, after all, stand in the way of the Lisbon Treaty after EU leaders decided to cede to his demand for an opt-out from the EU's Charter of Fundamental Rights - as had been obtained by the UK and Poland.

It is of some relief that his 15 minutes or so of fame - some would use other words to describe his conduct - are over, as the last obstacle has now been removed (barring an unlikely hiccup in the Czech Constitutional Court this week) to pave the way for the ratification of the Lisbon Treaty.

Had the issue dragged on till the British general election sometime next year, many feared that the treaty would have suffered the same fate as the European Constitution - since a Conservative government would probably have held a referendum on the issue and the British population are hardly renowned for their love of the EU.

Aside from the EU rhetoric of "more democratic, more transparent and more efficient", Lisbon means several things.

It means that countries have lost their right to make use of national vetoes in a number of areas. Some may argue that this makes a country like Malta less powerful, but in reality it is an option that is seldom, if ever, used by a sensible small nation. Malta has also gained an additional, sixth, European Parliament seat.

Lisbon means that a politician will be chosen to be the president of the European Council for two-and-a-half years, replacing the current system whereby countries take turns every six months to hold the EU presidency.

Britain has put up a high profile campaign to install Tony Blair. However, though he is undoubtedly charismatic and a big name on the world stage, the fact that he chose to support former US President George Bush's unpopular decision to send troops to Iraq - and that he comes from a country whose people have clearly not embraced the European ideal - makes it unlikely he will get the post.

Nor perhaps should he, when candidates with impeccable European credentials, particularly Luxembourg Prime Minister Jean-Claude Juncker, have also thrown their hat into the ring. The EU is in more need of a unifying personality than one whose star-personality is capable of overshadowing the entire bloc.

Lisbon also means that Malta will get the opportunity once again to nominate a European Commissioner, which may not have been the case if the treaty had stalled (and may not happen after 2014 when the Commission becomes smaller).

Three candidates are believed to be in the frame: Malta's current commissioner, Joe Borg; Malta's Permanent Representative to the EU, Richard Cachia Caruana; and Social Policy Minister John Dalli. The nomination of each of the three has pros and cons. But what is important is that Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi thinks about the European picture when he makes the choice.

The question Dr Gonzi needs to ask himself is: who is Malta's most able candidate for this role at this point in time? There is little doubting that it should be someone with a sound knowledge of the EU who will be capable of commanding respect and has the credentials to match. Though the commissioner will not be representing Malta, he will be a representative of Malta. And that is a factor that should not be underestimated.

What is important too is that the Prime Minister announces that decision soon. With the Klaus diversion out of the way, there is now no reason to wait.