Tribune
| 12/06/2003
The Convention has risen to the challenge since in all likelihood 80 to 90% of
Convention Members will endorse a draft text. The fact it didn't implode and the
draft will not contain options is very important for governments, most of which
were sceptical or suspicious of the Convention. It also had the merit of opening
the field to citizens interested in Europe, breaking down the walls behind which
the "happy few" work, said former European Commission President Jacques Delors on Wednesday at a conference organised by the
European Policy Centre. He did, however, highlight various weaknesses in the
Convention's work to date, regretting complete lack of progress regarding
Economic and Monetary Union and nothing but worthy sentiments about social
affairs. This is a strictly institutional view without political considerations,
he said, warning that one cannot be generous and well-meaning in the preamble
and not follow that up in policies. He also warned about dispelling ambiguity
that will give rise to problems, namely whether if the Charter of Fundamental
Rights is incorporated in the Treaty, the European Court of Justice could deal
with any appeal, which would question the role of national constitutional courts
and run the risk of creating inter-state tension (the UK has already drawn
attention to this in the Convention, Ed).
Delors was at pains to stress his delight at EU
enlargement, along with "doubts" at the "dialectic between enlargement and
deepening". He remembered that this had started at the Lisbon European Council
in 1992 where regarding all the accession requests the Commission said the EU
structure might have to be reconsidered but the reply was given that this was an
over-technocratic idea and one had to make progress. Delors repeated his strongly held idea that in the great
Europe of 27 Member States one would have to accept reasonable yet ambitious
objectives and that if by 2015 it had been possible to construct an area of
peace, respect for others, a sustainable and fair development structure with a
minimum of solidarity and creating a dynamic cultural diversity in Europe, then
historians will write that great Europe succeeded, but wanting to go further
would cause endless conflict. If we don't demonstrate solidarity on the level of
that we demonstrated for Spain, we will fail the challenge, said Delors, adding that when Spain tries to block the situation
it should remember the story of the vineyard workers in the Gospel and accept
newcomers. Inter-state solidarity should be emphasised, said Delors, recalling the huge sacrifices made by the future
Member States in order to join the EU. Stanley Crossick, founder of the EPC, wanted to see more
inter-state solidarity in the last weeks of the Convention than had been seen in
the whole of the previous year.
In the enlarged <st1:place>Europe</st1:place>, appropriate use of differentiation
would be required, said Jacques Delors, noting that
differentiation did not mean two-speed <st1:place>Europe</st1:place> and that without it,
one might reach a serious crisis, a lockjam, in the
future. He acknowledged, however, that there was little desire for this,
regarding economic governance for example. Although he was no longer President
of the Commission, Delors said he had proposed, in
vain, an economic policy coordination pact for eurozone countries and wondered whether EMU countries would
have to use strengthened cooperation. There was still less desire for
strengthened cooperation with regard to CFSP, he said, since the big countries
like holding discussions among 25 countries but then three or four of them meet
up thinking they can carry on as they did in Metternich's day. Delors said this hypocrisy had to be knocked on the head.
The future treaty should stipulate that every time countries have a common
interest, they shall decide on common action and the two or three that disagree
should constructively abstain.
I don't like the word "minister" much, it's too soon, said Delors,
about the idea of a European Foreign Minister, noting that Valéry Giscard d'Estaing had told
him that the minister would create the job. Giving the minister two hats is a
good idea, said Delors, adding that he dreamed of the
Solanas and Prodis of the
future putting everything in the same hands so that the EU can use all its trump
cards and instruments in external affairs, the way countries
do.
He said a stable presidency of the European
Council must not become an administration proper in years to come, stressing
that continuity, the Community Method, is the Council/Commission duo along with
a regular General Affairs Council clarifying the agenda. The European Council
should set broad guidelines. To the question of whether he would be nervous of
chairing a College of 25 or more Commissioners, Delors
said no. Every Member States wanted its own Commissioner so it could phone him
or her up for explanations about how the EU machinery worked. Permanent
Representatives might be a bit upset about this, admitted Delors, but it made up for the disadvantages of an extended
College.
Delors wanted the EU to speak with a single voice in
bodies like the IMF and the World Bank, saying there should be something like a
relatively fixed exchange rate between hard currencies and it was not right that
Europe should be a total victim of fluctuations in the
dollar.
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