AFP
Sunday, June 15, 2008

DUBLIN: The rainbow coalition of groups which helped secure Ireland’s shock EU “no” vote is savouring a famous victory — and working out how to ensure the Lisbon Treaty really is dead in its current form.

The “no” side brought together an unlikely assortment of campaigners notably including Libertas, a slick lobby group run by businessman Declan Ganley who is now considering taking the anti-Lisbon message to mainland Europe.

Also rallying opposition were Sinn Fein, the political wing of the Irish Republican Army (IRA) and the anti-abortion pressure group Coir, which raised concerns — unfounded according to opponents — that the treaty could threaten Ireland’s ban on abortion.

Together they helped the “no’ vote surge to a 53.4 to 46.6 per cent victory in results announced Friday, a much wider margin than had been expected after opinion polls suggested the race would go to right down to the line.

But with European leaders indicating that the treaty will not be killed off by the “no” vote, commentators are wondering what shape the Irish fight against it will take in the coming months.

This would be particularly crucial if there was a second referendum, which Prime Minister Brian Cowen has not ruled out and French European Affairs Minister Jean-Pierre Jouyet has said is unavoidable.

In an interview hours after the result was announced, Ganley was asked whether he would now move into politics full-time following the success of the campaign which he spearheaded.

“I’m not ducking the question, I genuinely don’t know the answer so I wouldn’t rule it in and I wouldn’t rule it out,” he told national broadcaster RTE on Saturday in a high-spirited appearance.

Whether or not he makes the leap into politics full-time, a Libertas spokesman said that Ganley was set to visit Europe “and see if he can build some sort of pan-European organisation”, without giving further details.

Sinn Fein, led by Gerry Adams, was the only major political party to back the “no” campaign and now says it wants to “support and assist” Cowen in the coming weeks.

“We will be seeking a meeting with the Taoiseach (prime minister) in the coming days to discuss with him the issues, which we believe can be addressed in a renegotiated treaty,” said Mary Lou McDonald, the party’s European lawmaker and face of its campaign.

FULL STORY: CLICK HERE

Bruno Waterfield
London Telegraph
Saturday, May 3, 2008

The European Union will open its own embassies under a plan critics fear represents a “power grab” by Brussels officials pushing for a federal superstate.

The secret plan represents the first time that full EU embassies have been discussed seriously.

The “Embassies of the Union” would be controlled by a new EU diplomatic service created by the Lisbon Treaty.

The Daily Telegraph has seen a high-level Brussels document discussing plans for a “European External Action Service” (EEAS) which was proposed under the new EU Treaty, currently being ratified in Westminster.

Talks have so far remained behind closed doors. Officials fear political fallout over plans to implement the new Treaty before it has been fully ratified.

Working papers circulating in Brussels suggest that more than 160 EU offices around the world, including in member states, would become embassies.

The new service would rival established diplomatic services. Britain, with one of the world’s largest, maintains 139 embassies and high commissions in capital cities.

Equally controversial is a proposal for EU ambassadors who would be accountable to the European Parliament.

“Parliament should aim for proper hearings of special representatives and ambassadorial nominees in the tradition of the US Congress for nominations of a clearly political nature,” says the document.

Full article here.

JANE MERRICK and IAN DRURY
UK Daily Mail
Thursday, March 6, 2008

The British people were finally denied a say on the EU constitution last night after a momentous day in the Commons.

MPs voted against holding a referendum on the biggest shift of power to Brussels for at least a decade.

This was despite pledges from both Labour and the Liberal Democrats that voters would have the chance to decide the issue.

The furious parliamentary debate on Europe plunged Nick Clegg’s LibDem leadership into crisis as 13 rebels – a fifth of his entire tally of MPs – joined the Tories in calling for a national vote.

Mr Clegg, who had ordered his MPs to abstain from voting, helped rescue Gordon Brown from defeat in two crucial votes on the Lisbon Treaty.

A Tory amendment calling for a referendum was defeated by 311 votes to 248, a Government majority of 63.

Some 29 Labour MPs also rebelled against the Prime Minister.

Yesterday’s Commons defeat means a vote in the House of Lords – where the Government could be defeated by Tories and crossbenchers – will be the last chance for campaigners.

That vote is due later this year.

Yesterday’s result will anger the public after 88 per cent of voters in mini-polls last weekend demanded a say.

The Lisbon Treaty will see the creation of a permanent EU president, foreign minister and diplomatic service and surrenders nearly 50 national vetoes to Brussels.

All three main parties made manifesto pledges in 2005 to hold a referendum on the EU constitution – now the revamped Lisbon Treaty.

Yesterday David Cameron taunted the Prime Minister that he was afraid of holding a national vote on the treaty because he knew it would be lost.

The Tory leader told Mr Brown at Prime Minister’s Questions: “All of us in this House promised a referendum. We have the courage of our convictions – you have lost your courage and that lot (the Liberal Democrats) have lost their convictions.”

Full article here.

Andrew Grice
London Independent
Saturday October 20, 2007

Tony Blair has emerged as a possible candidate for “President of Europe”, a new post created by the treaty approved by EU leaders at their Lisbon summit.

The former prime minister’s name was put in the frame yesterday by Nicolas Sarkozy, the French President, who described Mr Blair as “a very remarkable man – the most European of all Britons.” He added: “To think of him would be a good idea.”

The treaty scraps the current system under which one country holds the EU’s rotating presidency for six months. It will be replaced by the appointment of a President, who will chair EU meetings, drive through its agenda and serve for two-and-a-half years.

Gordon Brown said: “Tony Blair would be a great candidate for any significant international job.” He added: “As you know the work that he is doing in the Middle East is something that is of huge international importance.”

But he said it was premature to speculate on who might fill the post because the appointment would not be made until the treaty had been ratified by member states next year.

There remain considerable obstacles to Mr Blair securing the post. Although he is regarded as a heavyweight in EU capitals, he is also remembered as the man who divided Europe by giving George Bush such strong backing for the 2003 invasion of Iraq. Some EU diplomats predicted that he would not secure enough support from member states.

Friends doubt that Mr Blair would want the job. The new President would not be as powerful as the title or £200,000-a-year package suggests. He or she would help to shape the EU’s agenda and be seen as the EU’s representative on the world stage. But the key decisions would still be taken by national leaders from member states.

After standing down as Prime Minister in June, Mr Blair became the Middle East peace envoy for the Quartet – the United States, Russia, the United Nations and the EU. Yesterday his spokesman did not rule out him taking up the new EU post but said: “He is focusing on his current role in the Middle East.”

Other potential candidates for the post include Aleksander Kwasniewski, the former Polish president, and Bertie Ahern, the Irish Prime Minister.

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