There was a need for it

The Europe of the Treaties and the Europe of “results”: not two opposing visions, but two faces of the same coin. The European Parliament, meeting in Strasbourg for its plenary session from 22 to 25 October, held a debate on the results of the Lisbon summit, analysed on its first reading the EU budget for 2008, and then debated various specific issues: from foreign policy to the “sustainable” use of some pesticides, from the control of car gas emissions to the rising price of milk and cereals. The EP also approved a document on nuclear energy that emphasized its “advantages for the diversification of sources and measures to combat climate change”. A Report passed in the chamber asked for “regulations aimed at abolishing throughout the EU the right to smoke in closed premises”.THANKS TO THE TREATY, A STRONGER EU. “The intergovernmental conference that we had inaugurated on 23 July and that ended on 18 October was the most rapid in history. The reason is precise: Europe had a need for a strong signal, for confidence. At Lisbon we reached an agreement that resolves the crisis of the EU and that looks to the future”, declared JOSÉ SOCRATES , Portuguese premier and current President of the European Council, in his speech to the EP. Socrates defended the action of the Portuguese Presidency, calling the new Treaty “a success”. He expressed his gratitude for the cooperation obtained from Commission, Parliament and member states: “They all tried to reach a positive result”. The Portuguese politician also listed the “various obstacles” that the intergovernmental conference and the summit of 18-19 October had to overcome: the Ioannina clause (which enables a majority decision taken by the Council to be temporarily frozen), the question of the general advocates of the Court of Justice (passed by 8 to 11), the distribution of seats in the Parliament, and the opt-out clauses. EUROSCEPTICIS DEFEATED. According to José Socrates “it shouldn’t be forgotten that the Treaty of Lisbon confers binding legal value on the Charter of Rights”, “thus reinforcing European citizenship”. The debate in the chamber included interventions expressing appreciation for the work of the Portuguese Presidency, but also numerous harsh criticisms about the results of the summit and the contents of the Treaty, often compared with those of the Constitution of 2004. According to JOSÉ MANUEL BARROSO , President of the Commission, who also intervened in Strasbourg, “the Eurosceptics emerged defeated from the summit in Lisbon”. In his view, “this Treaty makes the best progress that is now possible” for the EU. With regard to the opt-outs obtained by some countries (Great Britain, Poland) on the Charter of Rights and justice and security policies, Barroso added: “It’s better to have opt-out clauses valid for a few countries than a Europe as a whole that slows down”.THE “SPIRIT OF LISBON”. As for the document on globalization that was presented by the Commission at Lisbon and that represents a fundamental pillar of the Executive’s programme for 2008, Barroso added: “The principle of the fifth freedom in Europe was accepted, namely, the freedom of circulation of researchers and of knowledge”. It is – he said – essential “for the Europe of the future if it is to keep pace with the globalization of processes”. This document had been requested by the Council and will be further discussed at the summit in December. “In this way we wish to demonstrate that, now that the Treaty has been approved, Europe is not standing still; on the contrary it is looking to the future – declared Barroso -. The future of Europe depends on the knowledge-based economy, progress of research, competitiveness, greater social cohesion, quality of work and respect for the environment”. “The spirit of Lisbon needs to be kept alive, for it is this spirit that enabled us to pass the Treaty”, concluded Barroso”. It’s a spirit that needs to be applied now “to tackle the real problems faced by citizens, who await a strong Europe able to respond to their hopes”.LESS POLLUTING CARS. Among the other issues debated by the EP particular interest was aroused by the report of the English MEP CHRIS DAVIES , which was approved in the chamber. It asks for a “reduction of up to 125 g/km for the emissions of carbon dioxide of cars by 2015”. This objective should be obtained – and this is the peculiarity of the report – “with the sole recourse to the technical improvements of vehicles”. It’s a document of direct concern to car manufacturers, but one that also urges member states “to adopt a system of penalties and better advertising of the ecological performance of cars, as well as tax and other incentives to renew the automobile stock”. But it’s also necessary to act on styles of driving (moderating speed and hence consumption), to give incentives to biofuels and to ease traffic flows thanks to new road infrastructures.