Ivan Camilleri, Brussels
Lisbon Treaty finally ratified
The Lisbon Treaty was ratified yesterday when the Czech Republic completed the process nearly 23 months after the reform document was signed by EU heads of state and of government.
The last legal and political obstacles fell yesterday, first with a ruling by the Czech Constitutional Court in the morning that the treaty is compatible with the Czech Constitution and then the signature by Czech President Václav Klaus in the afternoon.
Welcoming this development, the Swedish Presidency of the EU declared that the Treaty would now enter into force on December 1 and called upon the member states, particularly those, like Malta, who have not yet nominated a commissioner to serve in the new term to do so without delay.
Swedish Prime Minister Fredrick Reinfeldt said he would shortly be convening a summit for EU leaders to discuss names for the new Commission, the EU President and the foreign affairs chief.
The European Parliament, which will have to hold hearings for each newly-appointed commissioner, said it was ready to start such hearings on November 25.
These latest moves have now increased the pressure on Malta to nominate its new commissioner, with the announcement expected to be made in the coming days. Malta is one of a small number of member states still without a nomination.
Dr Gonzi's list of possible candidates consists of incumbent Commissioner Joe Borg, considered to be the first choice, Social Policy Minister John Dalli and Malta's Permanent Representative to the EU, Richard Cachia Caruana.
The extraordinary EU summit is expected to be held on November 12 or 19, by which date the new Commission is expected to be announced including the new portfolios to be assigned by Commission President José Manuel Barroso.
Meanwhile, Britain's Conservative Party yesterday abandoned plans for a European referendum after the Czech President signed the Lisbon Treaty.
Shadow foreign secretary William Hague said it was "no longer possible" to put the treaty to a popular vote of the British people.
"Now that the treaty is going to become European law and is going to enter into force, that means a referendum can no longer prevent the creation of the President of the European Council, the loss of British national vetoes," he said.
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Robert Scullion
Nov 5th 2009, 14:57
@steve elliott,uk
According to lgalea all the EU countries will cease to exist once the Lisbon Treaty comes into effect on 1st December. Be careful, cause next he'll explain that the death penalty will become law again.
However back in the real world .. the Lisbon treaty expands the number of areas where majority voting will take place. The voting uses a double majority (of countries and then populations). This way smaller countries cannot be outvoted by larger countries and vice versa. Tax rates, social services, education, health services are not part of the EU and remain within the national goverments.
There will be an EU President, one already exists for a 6month period but this will now be changed to one person for a 2.5 year period .. they will have no new powers other than what the current EU President already has.
I suspect lgalea to spout of some nonsense that this is all false, but contact your local EU Office and they will provide you with a copy of the Lisbon treaty, or the BBC News website has several articles about it.
lgalea
Nov 4th 2009, 22:30
http://www.visegradgroup.eu/main.php
Official hints President may want CzechRep to leave EU
Czech President Vaclav Klaus may want to return the Czech Republic its lost sovereignty by leaving the European Union, Petr Hajek, deputy head of the Presidential Office, said on television on Wednesday. He cited Klaus as saying earlier that the Czech Republic will cease to be a sovereign state after the Lisbon treaty comes into force.
04/11/2009
lgalea
Nov 4th 2009, 22:22
steve elliott,uk
I gave you a short and sweet answer.
If you want a long answer and have precious time to waste to try to understand the treaty let me tell you that it was purposely made in such a manner that common people won't understand it and therefore would not demand a referendum. You can hear Giuliano Amato who had a very big finger in the pie say this himself by going to http://www.cnimalta.org/amatoE.html and download the audio file.
steve elliott,uk
Nov 4th 2009, 19:38
@ lgalea. Most grateful but I'm ,eh, um, still in the dark
lgalea
Nov 4th 2009, 15:37
* Handing over of more power to the eu petty dictators to be used to destroy the nation state and create the utopia of the united states of europe as a federal state.
steve elliott,uk
Nov 4th 2009, 15:05
What is the Lisbon Treaty all about? Can some one please blog a few "bullet points" because I'm in the dark with this one