EU Brief

Irish Times Political Editor: second referendum cannot be won, so Lisbon Treaty should be pushed through Parliament

Irish Times Political Editor Stephan Collins has an article in the paper arguing that "a second referendum on the Lisbon Treaty is doomed to almost certain defeat."



He therefore suggests that the core of the Treaty should be passed through the Irish Parliament, with a far more limited referendum held on certain points of controversy:

"If a referendum cannot be won, the only solution is for the Dáil to find a way to ratify the essential nuts and bolts of the treaty, while allowing the electorate to vote again on the issues that caused such anxiety in the campaign." He suggests that the Dáil could ratify the Treaty while simultaneously opting out of areas such as the Charter of Fundamental Rights and the new defence arrangements "whose misrepresentation prompted so many women to vote No".



He admits that "Such an approach poses huge legal difficulties", and suggests that the Irish government has received "expert legal advice", saying that this "cannot be done, as there are legal problems at EU level about opting out of elements of the treaty after the event". However, he argues that "it should not be beyond the wit of constitutional lawyers to devise a solution to the problem... If the price that Ireland requires to ratify is some fancy legal footwork at European level then it should be possible to come up with a formula, empty or otherwise."



Arguing that most No voters did not understand the Treaty, Collins concludes that "a good proportion of the electorate might be relieved if the Dáil took on the responsibility of dealing with it, rather than opting for another long drawn out and confused public debate about issues people cannot, or will not, understand."



Dan Hannan MEP picks up on Collins' article on his Telegraph blog. He argues, "It's what I've been scared of all along. It's what I'd do if I were an Irish Euro-integrationist. And if Stephen Collins is writing it, political Dublin is planning it."



AFP has a news feature on what Ireland will do next following the No vote on the Lisbon Treaty. The article mentions Open Europe's poll, which suggested that 71 percent of Irish voters were against holding a second referendum, and reports that Europe Minister Dick Roche is "dismissive" of the findings.

Independent Molony Irish Times Collins AFP Sunday Business Post Telegraph Hannan



Britain faces rolling blackouts within 10 years - EU rules will contribute

Professor Ian Fells, one of Britain's foremost authorities on energy, has warned that Britain faces an electricity supply crunch within the next decade, according to the Sunday Express. Fells told the paper, "I have been in direct contact with energy companies and they are quite blunt about this. We will have rolling blackouts within 10 years, probably by 2015. This is not scaremongering. These companies are desperately worried and have few options." The article notes that EU environmental regulations will play a part in the shutdown of around 22.5 gigawatts of existing plants (about 40 per cent of total output) over the next decade. Due to demand growth over this period, this will need to be replaced by 30 gigawatts of new capacity.



The FT reports that Gordon Brown will shy away from placing a windfall tax on energy companies, but may try and raise revenue by increasing the number of permits that have to be auctioned under the EU Emissions Trading Scheme.

FT Express


European police join forces in Paris

Police from Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands, Spain and Poland have walked the beat with their French counterparts on joint patrols in Paris, on request of French president Sarkozy. The exercise used the legal basis of the Prüm treaty. Although the scheme is just a pilot, with it widely being seen as a success it is likely the project will be expanded in the future.

Standaard Deutsche Welle



CAP responsible for 12,000 premature deaths in the EU, claims WHO

The Telegraph and EUobserver report that the EU's Common Agricultural Policy could be causing more than 12,000 premature deaths every year in the EU. According to the World Health Organisation, the high level of CAP subsidies for fatty foods such as beef and milk results in far too many of these foodstuffs being produced leading to cheap prices and consequently increased consumption of saturated fats. The above-normal intake of fatty foods causes increased risk of heart disease and strokes. The report says that the CAP "might controversially be described as 'a system designed to kill Europeans through coronary heart disease'".

EUobserver Telegraph




A study from the EU Commission has found that world food prices are set to fall back from the heights they reached earlier this year, but are unlikely to drop back to the levels recorded before the recent price surge any time soon.

Deutsche Welle



Doha collapse comment round-up

The FT has a feature on the collapse of the Doha round of trade talks, with the Brazilian Foreign Minister Celso Amorim arguing that the breakdown "will have dire consequences, including the death of more people from starvation and the destabilising of more governments by runaway inflation". In addition, he says, it will lead to "a real fragmentation of world trade", with more bilateral agreements and protectionism. A leader in the IHT argues "The Doha talks did not do much for anybody, not even for the least-developed countries. Granting them concessions like duty-free access on 97 percent of their products sounded great - except most of the tariffs levied on poor country exports are aimed at that 3 percent."



The CER and the Common Agricultural Policy blogs note that an agreement in the Doha round is hugely important to lock in reform of the EU's Common Agricultural Policy. In the FT, Alan Beattie reviews trade economist Jagdish Bhagwati's latest book. Beattie agrees that bilateral and regional trade deals "generally do more to divert and distort" multilateral liberalisation. However, unlike Bhagwati, Beattie suggests that it may be time to drop the Doha round and instead "examine what else we can do to promote multilateral trade liberalisation."

IHT leader FT FT 2 Centre for European Reform blog CAP blog FT Beattie



EU wants to step up protection of ozone layer

European Voice reports on plans presented by the European Commission on Friday which state its aim to tighten restrictions on importing and exporting ozone-depleting substances. The plans also include measures to control illegal trade in and use of ozone-harmful products. The rule change, which requires the approval of member states, would include reducing the use of methyl bromide, an ozone-depleting substance used on animals in quarantine to prevent the spread of pests across international borders.

European Voice



Hamilton: EU arrest warrant "can ruin our lives"

Writing in the Sunday Express, Neil Hamilton has criticised the European Arrest Warrant. Hamilton points out that under the warrant, extradition requests can be issued without any evidence produced and argues that the system is unworkable given the variance between legal rights afforded to citizens from different EU countries. As a result, Hamilton argues, British citizens could find themselves tried in countries that lack basic legal protections such as "habeas corpus, trial by jury or the presumption of innocence... It is now as easy as posting a parcel to extradite a British citizen to any EU country. Unlike a parcel, the prisoner is almost bound to be delivered... Would you be confident of a fair trial in, say, Greece, Bulgaria or Romania?"

Express Hamilton



An article in Libération argues that Jose Barroso has "every chance" of winning a second five-year term as EU Commission President in June next year.

Liberation



Serbia will not give up Kosovo for EU membership

Serbian President Boris Tadic has dismissed the possibility of recognising Kosovo's independence - a move that Britain's ambassador to Serbia has said may slow down Belgrade's bid for EU membership.

Post Chronicle Reuters



Fresh Belgian elections in autumn?

Belgian Prime Minister Yves Leterme has refused any new deadlines set forth to reach an agreement on Belgian institutional reform. However the Flemish nationalist party N-VA, forming part of his own parliamentary faction, has decided to gather a congress of members on 21 September to decide whether Leterme should keep its support, raising the pressure on his CD&V party to leave the government if it wants to keep its nationalist ally. This raises the prospect of early elections this autumn.

De Tijd



NRC Handelsblad reports that a Dutch court has refused to send back a Somali asylum seeker to Greece, judging the Greek civil rights protection insufficient.

NRC Handelsblad



The Guardian reports that a small French market town has welcomed the Franc back into circulation to boost business.

Guardian



World



Iran will talk to EU, but will not halt nuclear programme

Whilst Iran continues to rule out halting its uranium-enrichment programme, it says it will talk to the EU again. An Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman said that the atomic work was "Iran's inalienable right", and that they would "press ahead", but also claimed that negotiations with EU Foreign Affairs Chief Javier Solana would commence today. Tehran's failure to comply with the original EU deadline of Saturday has prompted the US to call for a new set of UN sanctions on the country. This would be the fourth set of penalties imposed on Iran since 2006.

Reuters EUobserver Deutsche Welle Reuters



Separatists in South Ossetia claim that they have evacuated 1000 children to Russia following attacks on civilians. Georgia denies launching any such attacks, but it is speculated that the tense situation may lead to a return to war in the area.

Irish Times



European Parliament President Hans-Gert Poettering has urged athletes taking part in the Olympics to protest against Chinese human rights violations in Tibet.

EUobserver