91ST PLENARY SESSION

Thank you, Chairman. Chairman, I would like to welcome both speakers to the Forum and to thank them for their presentations and also to welcome the opportunity to discuss the institutional arrangements under the Lisbon Treaty. I think most of us would agree that a large part of the Lisbon Treaty is about introducing new institutional changes within the European Union.  A lot of these changes are about making the European Union more efficient, about streamlining decision making and so on, about recognising the impact that recent enlargements have had on decision making processes within the Union, and also possibly anticipating and trying to provide for future enlargements.  Obviously making the European Union efficient enough to be able to accommodate its membership and make decisions and so on is important and the Lisbon Treaty does facilitate this. 

But there is often a trade off between efficiency and democracy, and I think the concern of people who are looking at the changes in terms of efficiency that are being made is they don’t want to see the quality of democracy being diminished and perhaps that is why people who are arguing on the No side very often look for some of the characteristics of the nation state, the systems that they are familiar with, of parliamentary democracy within the nation state, to be replicated at a European level.  Because there is a concern that as you move into the 21st century that we don’t want to see the quality of democracy within the systems of governance that we experience, we don’t want to see that diminished. 

However, I do think there are important concessions and important moves in the direction of greater democracy contained within the provisions of the Lisbon Treaty.  Not enough and the Green Party would certainly like to see much further moves in the direction of democratising the European Union.  But one of the important ones I think is worth mentioning here today is the fact that the co‑decision making powers of the parliament, the European Parliament are significantly extended.  That does strengthen the parliamentary dimension of the European Union.  It does mean that the democratic legitimacy, I would say, of the Union is enhanced overall and it reduces the exercise of executive power within the Union because I think to date it would be true to say the power that is exercised by the Commission could be described as executive power.  Similarly the Council of Ministers operates like a cabinet, so therefore it is, in effect, executive power that is being exercised.  So the extension of the co‑decision will see much greater emphasis on parliamentary democracy, much more open debate and discussion about all of the directives and legislation that is being considered by the European Union and I think that has to be a good thing.

I think a very welcome provision of the Lisbon Treaty is the fact that the European Parliament can now elect the President of the Commission.  I think this means that the European Council will have to be careful and consider the weightings of the different parties, political groupings I should say, within the European Parliament when it is proposing a candidate for President of the Commission.  I think this is a point that we should be making in the run up to the European elections next year to the citizens of Europe is that who you vote for and if there is a sufficient representation, let’s say, of left leaning political parties or right leaning, that is going to influence the kind of President that is elected to the Commission and, therefore, the kind of legislation, because we know that the Commission retains the right of legislative initiative.  So I think it is very important that the parliament has this new power, not just to assent to the President but to actually elect the President of the Commission. 

I know people have spoken in terms of the institutional arrangements proposed, that they are concerned about the loss of a Commissioner per Member State.  That basically was proposed by the Nice Treaty but it is certainly re‑emphasised within the Lisbon Treaty.  I don’t think it is going to be such a problem that each Member State is not recognised.  I think if you accept that the European Commission is supposed to represent the European interest and not the specific interests of individual Member States, then I think not having a Commissioner for five years out of fifteen is not such a problem.  But I do think one of the things that probably needs to be considered is whether the cabinets that are serving the Commissioners have adequate representation of officials from all of the Member States so that the perspectives and the interests of each Member State can be recognised and accommodated by the Commission and can inform the thinking of the various commissioners within their portfolios.  The last point ‑‑

Chairperson
Could we perhaps leave it at that, if you wouldn’t mind.

Senator Déirdre de Búrca
Could I make one just last point, Chairman?

Chairperson
If you would do it briefly, please.

Senator Déirdre de Búrca
I think there is a concern again, because of the fact that there is a move much more towards population‑based voting system, both within the Council of Ministers, the numbers of seats are being decreased and are more in keeping within the Parliament with the population of Member States and the fact, I suppose, that Member States are losing an automatic right to a Commissioner, there is a concern on the part of smaller states and I would just like to ask both speakers whether they would envisage, at any stage in the future, some kind of institutional arrangements similar to the US Senate, where there is equality of representation.  There is some kind of institutional accommodation of smaller states where there is equality of representation from all States within the Union?  Thank you.

91st plenary session of the National Forum on Europe • Westin Hotel • College Green • Dublin • 10 April 2008
Former EU Commissioner Mr David Byrne and Ms Susan George, chair of the Planning Board of the Transnational Institute, addressed the theme ‘The Institutional Arrangements under the Treaty of Lisbon’

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National Forum on Europe by Deirdre