Sarkozy warns Czech Republic of “consequences” of delaying ratification of Lisbon Treaty
18 September 2009
The FT’s
EUobserver reports that French President Nicolas Sarkozy has warned the
DPA reports that Jan Fischer said yesterday that ratification of the Lisbon Treaty could take up to six more months in his country.
Meanwhile, writing in the Irish Times Tony Allwright looks at the ‘guarantees’ offered to Ireland on taxation and neutrality and argues, “they only nibble at the treaty’s edges, and studiously avoid the rotten core to which so many people fundamentally object.” He goes on to list four reasons to vote ‘No’, and four reasons not to vote ‘Yes’, including “the dishonesty of having converted the readable, understandable, if internally contradictory Treaty Establishing A Constitution For Europe into the Lisbon Reform Treaty.”
Jamie Smyth in the Irish Times looks at what will happen in terms of the size of the EU Commission if Ireland votes ‘No’, and describes Swedish PM Fredrik Reinfeldt’s ‘26 plus one plan’ as “the most obvious contingency plan”.
The front page of the Telegraph reports on the story that the ‘Europe for
The Irish Times reports the news that Dutch PM Jan Peter Balkenende has emerged as a possible candidate for the position of President of the European Council, a position that would be created under the Lisbon Treaty.
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Open Europe debates EU regulation and the EMU in
Open Europe and the Educational Initiative for Central and Eastern Europe on Wednesday organised a conference in
There were two separate panel debates. The first one asked the question “would the euro be good for
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German upper house approves laws required for
New complaints against Treaty are filed with the
Today, all 16 federal states in the German Bundesrat (upper house) have voted in favour of the laws accompanying the ratification of the Lisbon Treaty. This was the last parliamentary hurdle for ratifying the Treaty in
Meanwhile, FAZ reports that Diether Spethmann, former CEO of Thyssen, and one of the actors in the first lawsuit against the Lisbon Treaty in
Meanwhile, in an article in the Telegraph, Andrew Gimson looks at the German Constitutional court ruling on the Lisbon Treaty and writes, “In a tone of barely suppressed fury, the court enumerates the encroachments Europe has made on national judicial systems and rules that this process must go no further… The German judges add that measures of European integration ‘must, in principle, be revocable’, and declare that they themselves have the right to safeguard ‘the inviolable core content’ of the German constitution.”
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FSA announces its support for fight against EU’s Alternative Investment Directive
City AM reports that the Financial Services Authority (FSA) yesterday gave its support to the hedge fund and private equity industries and called on the EU to rethink its plans for a crackdown on the alternative investment industry. Managing Director of the FSA’s risk division, Sally Dewar, said the EU must address weaknesses in the current rules in a “proportionate” way in its draft directive on alternative investment funds.
Meanwhile, German magazine Focus reports that
Charlemagne: There is an idea in
The Economist’s Charlemagne blog looks at the re-election of Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso and writes, “Labelling the Tories ‘Europhobes’ is a slippery step, if that is what some commentators are trying to do. It smacks of this idea you hear in Brussels that policies are not legitimate if they are not supported by a ‘pro-European majority’ in the European parliament, meaning the centre left S&D group, the centre right EPP group and the Liberals and Greens.”
Economist: Charlemagne notebook
Ambrose Evans-Pritchard:
In the Telegraph, Ambrose Evans-Pritchard argues that the
As part of the paper’s “State of Europe” series, Jeremy Warner also looks at the euro writing, “The single currency has survived because the line that has been held on the stability and growth pact has been roundly ignored. Toleration of unruly behaviour has saved the euro from forced or voluntary withdrawal.”
Meanwhile an article in the WSJ reports that “
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There is widespread coverage of yesterday’s meeting of EU leaders ahead of the G20 summit in
The article notes that the
EUobserver notes that EU leaders have also agreed that the global economic recovery is still too fragile to begin a roll-back of economic stimulus packages, with Mr. Reinfeldt saying that “exit strategies need to be designed now but implemented later”.
Meanwhile German newspaper Welt reports that Chancellor Angela Merkel advocated a global financial tax during yesterday’s EU summit which then could be brought up at next weeks G20 meeting in Pittsburgh. However the EU is divided on this issue. While
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Euractiv reports French MP Pierre Lequiller and MEP Sophie Auconie are to be appointed to produce a report on EU funds that were allocated to
EU anti-fraud agency urged to reconsider decision not to probe alleged irregularities in EP financing of parliamentary buildings
The Parliament reports that EU anti-fraud agency OLAF has been asked to rethink its decision not to probe alleged irregularities in the financing of parliamentary buildings. European Ombudsman Nikiforos Diamandouros reportedly made two recommendations to Parliament and Olaf concerning the financing of the Willy Brandt, József Antall and Altiero Spinelli buildings in
Lord Mandelson last night called on
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MEPs endorse short-term support for dairy farmers
MEPs have endorsed a resolution which urges the Commission to adopt a package of short-term initiatives aimed at supporting dairy producers. However, MEPs were split on some of the other major issues, namely the abolition of milk quotas, an EU market measure that the Commission and member states maintain will be abolished in 2015, according to The Parliament.
AFP reports that the Association of Dairy Producers has declared that more than 40,000 farmers of eight European countries have participated to a milk strike to put pressure on the Commission to halt the fall in price of milk.
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Three-party coalition looks like possible outcome of the German election
German opinion polls indicate that
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On his blog the BBC’s Political Editor Nick Robinson considers what relations with the EU would be like if David Cameron were Prime Minister. He says that it was noted across Europe that the Conservative leader dodged a question on what he would do if the Irish vote No to the Lisbon Treaty and asks “Would the Tory leader prefer to see his first few months in office occupied by a battle with the EU or with Eurosceptics in his own party?”
A Populus poll for the Times has found that when asked “Which of the main parties would do the best job representing
In the Guardian, Edward McMillan-Scott writes of his “shock” at the Conservatives’ decision to expel him from the party.
Die Presse reports that after yesterday’s talks between EU Commission President Barroso and Austrian Chancellor Werner Faymann, Wilhelm Molterer and Johannes Hahn are the prime candidates for the position of Austrian EU Commissioner.
In the Telegraph, Jeff Randall notes that the option for the Government of increasing subsidies to Royal Mail and the Post Office network as necessary social services has been removed by the EU, which has the power to decide how much state aid is allowed.
EurActiv reports that Jirí Šedivý, the Assistant Secretary-General of NATO, has said co-operation between the EU and NATO in the field of counter-terrorism is in “dire need of improvement” and that the inability for the organisations to share information due to an internal blockage between
European Voice reports that the Estonian government has nominated Siim Kallas to serve a second term as a European Commissioner.
John Petley, of the Bruges Group, looks in the Telegraph at EU efforts to harmonise railways and argues that the result “is becoming increasingly detrimental to
In a letter to the Telegraph Conservative MEP Charles Tannock argues that, “The debate about
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