Rapid ratification urged” “

Musical themes, slogans, balloons and banners with the word “yes” in various languages: a sober celebration, in “community” style, welcomed the green light given by the European Parliament in Strasbourg to a Resolution that supports the Constitutional Treaty and recommends its rapid ratification to member states. In recent days the EU also defined a strategy for humanitarian aid to South-East Asia and approved the plan of work of the current Luxembourg Presidency of the European Council for the first half of 2005. Support for the constitution. “The result of the vote leaves no doubts about the support of the Parliament for the new Constitution. This is an historic moment for democracy and for the process leading to a united Europe”. A short speech by the President of the EP in Strasbourg, the Spaniard Josep Borrell, emphasized the favourable result of the vote on Wednesday 12 January. MEPs approved a Resolution that welcomes the new Constitutional Treaty as a foundation “to pursue without delay the process of integration”; the text asks member states to ratify the Constitutional Treaty as soon as possible. Of the 677 votes cast, 500 were in favour of the Resolution, 137 against, while 40 abstained. Protests of Eurosceptics, contrary to the Constitution, were not lacking, outside the debating chamber. According to the Commissioner for Institutional Relations and Communication, the Swedish Margot Wallstrom, “the powers, functions, right and duties [of the institutions] are finally spelt out in a single text that replaces the 12 preceding Treaties”. The result is that “the EU is now more open and easier to understand. We now have more democracy”. HUMANITARIAN AID UNDER THE AEGIS OF THE UNO. The President of the European Commission, the Portuguese Josè Manuel Durao Barroso, and the Foreign Minister of Luxembourg Jean Asselborn reviewed the situation regarding the emergency aid already decided by the EU in favour of the populations struck by the tsunami and outlined the measures for long-term reconstruction, “according to a principle of solidarity”, which “will require a long period of investments”. After the first interventions of Echo, the Commission’s Office for Humanitarian Aid, the EU and its member states “will allocate 1.5 billion euros” to disaster relief. The EU has reaffirmed, also with a declaration of the EP, that the “UNO should be responsible for the coordination of the aid”; but “further and rapid decisions on civil protection” and a study “to establish means of prevention” are also needed. “REFORMING, NOT RADICALLY ALTERING, THE PACT”. The Luxembourg Presidency made its debut before the European Parliament this week, when it presented its programme of work for its semester at the head of the Council. Financial issues and the Lisbon Strategy (more competitive economy and social cohesion) were placed in the forefront by premier Jean Claude Junker, who also promised priority attention to the start of negotiations for future accessions to the Union and to foreign policy issues, including the situation in Iraq and relations with the USA. As regards the future of the single currency, Junker warned that “the Stability Pact may be reformed, but not radically altered” and stressed that “its fundamental criteria (ratio of 3% between deficit and GDP and 60% between debt and GDP) must remain unvaried”. The Pact “needs to be made more flexible to respond to the difficult phase in the economic cycle – added Junker -, but I say no to those who are seeking a flexibility without rules”. Junker lastly deprecated “the excessive European bureaucracy”, maintaining that the EU must be “concrete and efficient” and “pursue realizable projects”, in favour of citizens. OMBUDSMAN: THE GREEK Diamandouros CONFIRMED. “Guaranteeing that the rights of European citizens be respected at all levels of the Union” and “helping citizens to know their rights, through a reinforced programme of information”: these are the two main challenges that the Greek Nikiforos Diamandouros, European Ombudsman, intends to tackle. The EP has just reconfirmed him in his post. GREEN PAPER ON ECONOMIC IMMIGRATION. The Commission has adopted a Green Paper on immigration “for economic motives”, and presented it to the EP on 11 January. The document was described by the Commissioner for justice, liberty and security, the Italian Franco Frattini, and by the Commissioner for employment and social affairs, the Czech Vladimir Spidla. The document – said Frattini – “will provide the basis for a transparent discussion involving the institutions themselves, as well as civil society, businesses and trades unions, on the common rules to regulate the entry of immigrants, without interfering with the responsibility of member states to establish the number of those to be admitted”.