2007 has been "the year of recovery after integration came to a standstill as a result of Constitutional failure". Nicole Fontaine, French MEP, formerly the president of the Assembly of Strasbourg, explains in an interview with SIR (online from tomorrow) her position on the Lisbon Treaty, the current ratification process, the news introduced by the Treaty, and its limitations. In her opinion, "the European Council held in the Portuguese capital last October achieved one single, although important, goal: to set the common institutions in motion again. Yet the trauma caused by the French and Dutch referenda on the Constitution has not been overcome yet, and the citizens are still distant from the EU". The member of the Ump, president Sarkozy’s party, lists the "political" and legal "results" that have been delivered, but points out that such decisions "do not help solve the usual questions: do we want a single market or a solidarity-based Europe? Should national interests or higher common interests prevail in the EU?. So, "we must go back to reflect on the type of integration we want to accomplish, and whether, to pursue it, we are prepared to surrender parts of our sovereignty to the EU". (continued) ” “
