Telegraph UK (Link) - Bruno Waterfield (September 4, 2009)
WHAT IS THE LISBON TREATY?
The Lisbon Treaty is the controversial successor to the European Union Constitution and is billed as necessary update to streamline Brussels institutions.
EU leaders agreed the reforms in order to help the Union function more smoothly now its membership has grown from 15 to 27, and in order for Europe to play more of a role as a single bloc on the global stage.
It is the latest in a series of treaties amending the original 1957 Treaty of Rome - from the Single European Act, through the Maastricht Treaty and the Treaties of Amsterdam and of Nice - to integrate institutions, as the policies and scope of the EU has expanded over the last 20 years.
British diplomats have claimed that the Lisbon Treaty will be the last changes to EU institutions until 2020, or beyond.
When the treaty comes into force, it will create two new and potentially powerful posts, a President and a "foreign minister", and further streamline decision-making to make it harder for countries to block legislation that most members favour.
In particular there will be more "qualified majority voting" in the Council of Ministers, the Brussels body where ministers from each member state must thrash out many of the big policy decisions together. That will make it harder for individual countries like Britain to block laws that they do not like. There will also be greater involvement of the European Parliament, although MEPs will still not have the power to propose or table laws by themselves.
Continue reading "Lisbon Treaty Q & A: your guide to what it means and what happens next" »
Recent Comments