– EU institutions cannot have authority without popular consent says Green Party Europe spokesperson

In today’s Seanad debate on the Lisbon Treaty, Green Party Spokesperson for European Affairs, Senator Déirdre de Búrca called for urgent action by the European Union to address the issue of the democratic deficit and the levels of disengagement by citizens from EU institutions which she claims has been evident during referendums that occurred prior to the Lisbon treaty referendum.

‘Much of the commentary that has followed the recent No vote of the Irish people to the Lisbon Treaty has concentrated on the challenge that confronts the Taoiseach, Brian Cowen, as he faces into a European Council meeting on Thursday,” she said. “It is to be hoped that a sense of European solidarity, so frequently referred to during the recent referendum campaign, will be in evidence when he meets his EU colleagues this week to discuss the way forward. The European Union’s ‘legitimacy’ problems did not begin with the Irish rejection of the Lisbon Treaty, which is symptomatic of a wider and more enduring problem within the EU.’

Senator De Búrca said that as the areas of competence of the EU institutions expand, it is essential that EU institutions are not seen to have “authority without popular consent”. She argued that if this issue is not addressed by its Member States, it will undoubtedly prove a fatal flaw in what is otherwise a very successful, ambitious and innovative trans-national political project, designed to respond to the challenges of the 21st century.

‘The urgent political need to generate much greater levels of popular support for the process of European integration clearly requires an EU-wide response. No individual MemberState should be held responsible for ‘failing to deliver’ the support of its electorate. The tendency of the political classes to rely almost exclusively on processes of parliamentary ratification to facilitate further EU integration needs to be re-evaluated, as- over time- it can only serve to deepen a sense of public alienation from the project.’

The Green Party Senator referred to a proposal put forward by her colleagues in the European Green Party who have called for a short, clear and focussed  ’European Act for Democracy’ which would deal with the issue of the democratic deficit as perceived by European citizens at this stage in the process of European integration.

‘The Act would include the Charter of Fundamental Rights, more democratic and representative decision-making processes including a stronger role for the European Parliament and national parliaments, and innovative ways of involving citizens in EU politics and governance, including measures like the Citizens Initiative” said Senator de Burca. “My colleagues have suggested that this ‘European Act for Democracy’ should be put to all EU citizens in an EU-wide referendum, held on the same day as the European Parliament elections next year.  They see this Act as the best way of regaining the trust of the people of the EU, and enabling the Union to really make a positive difference to citizen’s lives.’

Senator De Búrca said that she hopes this is the kind of creative solution to the current political impasse that EU leaders will be discussing with Taoiseach Brian Cowen when they meet him later this week.

Information: Senator Déirdre de Búrca • (086) 806 14 50

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European Affairs, Seanad Speeches, Speeches by Deirdre