Seanad debates

Thursday, 6 November 2003

European Communities (Amendment) Bill 2003: Second Stage.

 

These different priorities will lead to a heightening over the next few years of a tension which has always existed to some extent within the EU. It is important that the structures of the EU are capable of accommodating those tensions. An awareness of the problem informed the thinking behind the creation of the draft constitution. I am not enthusiastic about unpicking the Nice treaty, the complex negotiations on which I do not think the Minister of State was involved with. The triple mechanism decision-making structure which was agreed is a complex one few European citizens understand. Nonetheless, it reflects a fair way of progressing and strikes a balance between old and new, large and small. It would be a pity if, in trying to create a new constitution, which was meant to simplify matters, we ended up un-picking the Nice treaty in a fashion that caused unnecessary tension within the EU. In that context, we have already heard arguments that Hungary wants to have parity with Belgium on decision making and so on and Poland wants parity with Spain.

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