This to me seems a 'pig-in-a-poke'. Most of my readers want LESS EU
[except those who want out altogether!!] not a pan-EU party to give
it more legitimacy and thus tie us closer in! The Beeb will
undoubtedly latch on to this because it will split the anti-Socialist
and anti-EU voters and deliver us up bound hand and foot to the
socialist EU.
It has only one merit and that is that it is against the Lisbon
Treaty but these elections will have no bearing on that!
So it's back to wondering who on earth to vote for. If we were'nt
hamstrung by a cunningly contrived ant-democratic list system there
are plenty of good Tories who deserve our vote. But to get them you
have to take the europhile rubbish too.
It might have to be a clothes peg on my nose as I vote for the BNP,
I suppose.
xxxxxxxxx cs
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BBC ONLINE 10.3.09
Libertas enter EU elections in UK
A new political party aiming to "bring more democracy" to the EU has
been launched in the UK and plans to fight every seat in June's
European election.
Libertas, which campaigned against the Lisbon Treaty in an Irish
referendum last year, said it would send a "clear message" the treaty
was unacceptable.
Declan Ganley, the party's founder, has not ruled out standing but
said he would not bankroll its efforts.
Libertas said it was "pro-European" and wanted to contest seats
across the EU.
Businessman Mr Ganley became a household name in Ireland when he led
the successful campaign against the Lisbon Treaty last year.
'No limits'
Libertas plans to field candidates in every EU state in June, calling
for radical reform of its institutions to make them more democratic
and accountable.
The party's UK campaign will be led by Robin Matthews, a former
soldier who left the army last year after more than 20 years' service
in countries such as Bosnia and Afghanistan.
At a launch in London, Mr Matthews said there was "no limit" to its
ambitions and it wanted to be seen as a serious political force.
The party is currently recruiting candidates but has not committed
itself to contesting any elections beyond June.
Mr Ganley said he would not put any of his own money into the
campaign, saying the party would rely on individual donations, both
from small donors and businesses.
He said the EU's failure to deal with the current financial crisis
was evidence of its weakness and he attacked Gordon Brown for
"deceiving" voters by not holding a referendum on the Lisbon treaty
in the UK.
Second referendum
The Conservatives and UKIP, which have fought for a referendum in the
UK on the treaty, have questioned how much support the new party
could command.
Robin Matthews said there was "no limit" to Libertas' ambitions
The Lib Dems, who back the Lisbon treaty, said the launch of Libertas
meant "anti-European voters in Europe were spoilt for choice" in the
upcoming election.
Irish voters are due to vote again on the treaty later this year
after rejecting it by a wide margin last year.
The majority of EU countries, including the UK, have ratified the
treaty - which requires the backing of all 27 member states.
Ireland is the only country to have held a referendum on it.
Supporters of the treaty say it will speed up decision-making and
make the EU more efficient, enabling it to react more quickly to the
economic challenges facing Europe.
But critics say the treaty will centralise even more power in
Brussels and it is largely similar to the EU constitution rejected by
voters in France and the Netherlands in 2005.
========================
BBC Blog 10.3.09
What does Libertas really want?
. Mark Mardell
Libertas are launching their British campaign for the June European
elections today, saying that a vote for them is a vote to bring
democracy into the European Union. But with no manifesto unveiled,
how do we really know what they stand for?
Libertas, you might remember were the people who campaigned for the
"no" vote in the Irish election. As a result, they are loathed by
those who feel the EU is nothing without the new treaty. They've said
they will put up candidates in all 27 EU member states and I am told
they are well on course in all but a handful.
They've just announced that their UK party leader is Robin Mathews, a
former director in the Army's department of corporate communications,
who's served in Cyprus, Bosnia, Iraq and Afghanistan. Before the
launch, I asked him why people should vote for him.
"It sends a very clear message to those unelected elites and
bureaucrats, who seek to daily interfere in our lives more closely,
that this cannot go on without proper accountability. The EU needs to
change. Libertas believes in a strong Europe but also believes unless
democracy is at the heart of that we'll never be able to deliver," he
said.
But how would they bring more democracy to the EU?
"Give people a clear platform and give them a chance to vote for you
knowing that because of your pan-European approach, you can bring
democracy to the heart of Europe," he explained.
But what does this mean? Electing the European Commission, or
electing the new European Council president as Libertas founder
Declan Ganley believes?
"What ever you do with elected commissioners or an elected
commission, they must be accountable to the people. Libertas is
seeking such a mandate at the ballot box and that is our first task
before we look at exactly ways to reform the commission, president or
what ever," Mr Mathews said.
There was a lot more in this vein. Mr Mathews's argument was that
Libertas could deliver a vote across the entire EU, and that would
bring more democracy into the system. But, he was unwilling or unable
to suggest how do this.
This is interesting because while most people would probably support
the idea of "more democracy in the EU", it is not clear what it means.
More powers for the European Parliament? An elected president? An
elected commission? All of those would take power away from the
people who we choose in general elections. I suspect most people who
say it would mean less power for European institutions and more for
national parliaments.
Which is fair enough, but it is not actually about increasing
democracy in the EU as such.
National leaders may occasionally get irritated by the commission's
ideas, but in the end the commission are their servants, if sometimes
ones with Jeeves-like powers. National leaders wouldn't dream of
giving them more legitimacy.
The same goes for a foreign affairs chief or president of the
council. It is because Mr Ganley has supported an elected president
that he has had little luck striking a deal with traditional
conservatives. It would transform the EU, but maybe not in a way
traditional Eurosceptics would relish.
========================
POLITICS HOME 10.3.09
The World at One, Radio 4 at 13:27
Ganley: Libertas raising money in many EU member states
Declan Ganley, Libertas founder
Mr Ganley said that democracy is broken in Brussels, and dismissed
suggestions that Libertas was a rich man's pursuit, saying much of
the funding for the party comes from small donations dfrom across the
EU.
"The primary interest and the thing most broken in Brussels is the
matter of democracy.
"What we all agree on is accountable government is necessary. It's
stunning to see how Brussels, through a sort of divide and conquer,
has been able to stifle those voices."
He said money was being raised for the party through small donors,
and added, "we are now raising money in many of the member states of
the European Union.
"It's so important to get people to go out and participate. Making
contributions is an important part of the democratic process."
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