Green Party European Affairs spokesperson and Dublin Candidate for the European Elections, Senator Deirdre de Burca, has welcomed statements by European Commission President Barroso today, showing support for retaining a commissioner for every EU member state.

Senator de Burca said: “President Barroso has thrown his weight behind the idea of preserving one country, one commissioner, which obviously will be a pre-condition for Ireland with regard to any re-run of the referendum on the Lisbon Treaty.” President Barroso made his comments before the critical EU Summit which will be held on Thursday and Friday in Brussels.

Under the Lisbon Treaty, the EU’s executive – the Commission – was to slim down in 2014 so that it would include representatives from only two-thirds of EU countries, with each country represented in two commissions out of three.

“There is resistance from certain Member States to the idea of going back on Lisbon’s arrangements for a slimmer commission,” said Senator de Burca. “Countries such as Belgium and the Netherlands strongly supported a reduced number of commissioners. However, I believe that there is a strong political will to assist Ireland in overcoming some of the problems that led to the rejection of the Lisbon Treaty by the people earlier this year. President Barroso’s remarks today are very encouraging and will hopefully set the tone for what will be a constructive and productive summit of EU leaders.”

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Press Release by Deirdre