In attendance: Mr. Colm Burke, MEP, Mr. Gay Mitchell, MEP, and Mr. Eoin Ryan, MEP.

 I welcome members of the European Parliament’s constitutional affairs committee and thank them for their contributions. Ireland’s position on the Lisbon treaty is a major concern and focus of attention. While this is understandable, is it possible that the concentration by the institutions of the European Union on the ratification of the Lisbon treaty may lead them to overlook the serious disengagement of citizens from the Union?

While I agree with some of the comments made on the democratic provisions of the Lisbon treaty. While the European Union will clearly operate in a more democratic fashion if the treaty comes into effect, I do not believe it will operate in such a way as to reverse the disconnection between European citizens and the institutions of the European Union which has developed over years. In tandem with focusing on the Lisbon treaty, are the institutions considering other options such as introducing an EU-wide initiative for democracy and greater citizen engagement? Unless this issue is addressed in a serious and comprehensive manner across the institutions, the problem of disconnection will remain. Even if the Lisbon treaty is ratified, the fear of holding referendums and asking citizens for their views on issues will persist. We will still have the same legitimacy problem, which has developed over the years in the European Union.

The European Green Party put forward a positive initiative in the European Parliament, namely, the European Democracy Act. That Act proposed that if it was not possible to ratify the Lisbon treaty now, it might be possible to take its most democratic aspects and put them together in a democracy Act and put it to the citizens of the European Union in an EU-wide referendum or plebiscite. This would break the barrier that exists to the idea of putting something to an EU-wide referendum or plebiscite. I know there are real concerns about doing this, but the advantage of packaging the democratic elements of the Lisbon treaty together in an Act and putting it to the citizens is that it is bound to be attractive to them, particularly elements such as the idea of supporting something like the citizens’ initiative, the role for national parliaments, co-decision for the European Parliament and the Charter for Fundamental Rights. If anything is to mobilise the support of citizens, it is such provisions, which will democratise the European Union to a greater extent. Does the delegation feel this type of initiative is important, whether or not the Lisbon treaty is ratified? 

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Joint Committee on European Affairs by Deirdre