FOLLOWING THE EUROPEAN UNION

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Quote:

Poles 'back down' on EU charter

Poland has said it may drop its opposition over voting rights to allow a deal on a new EU constitution.
"We believe that a compromise is not only necessary but possible," Polish Prime Minister Leszek Miller said.

He was speaking after talks in Warsaw with German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder, who said Berlin would stick to a voting system in a draft text.

Last year, the EU failed to agree on the draft text because of opposition from Poland and Spain.

Both countries have been keen to preserve voting rights in the Council of Ministers in an expanded EU, under a 2000 agreement that gives them a greater say than their population would warrant, compared to Germany, France, Britain and Italy.

But Spain's incoming Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero has already promised to look again at the policy.

Given that the German and French leaders last week signalled they would not be moving on their positions - that would mean Poland backing down, the BBC's Ray Furlong in Berlin says.

Bigger say
On Tuesday, Mr Schroeder stressed that the new voting system should be based on the "double majority" principle proposed in the draft constitution.

Under the proposal, EU laws would be adopted by a majority of member states representing 60% of the population.

But Mr Schroeder added that any future agreement must also reflect Poland's demands to have a bigger say in the EU.

Both Mr Miller and Mr Schroeder expressed hopes that the constitution would be adopted "under the Irish presidency" - which end on 30 June.

The EU constitution is aimed at improving the efficiency of the bloc after it grows to 25 members from the current 15 on 1 May.

Poland is by far the largest country set to join the EU.

SOURCE

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georgeob1 wrote:

I am frequently mistified by the ease with which you and others from Europe take sectarian positions with respect to our internal political processes. I noted your comments on your perceptions of the fairness of our election system. Why are such things so much more common on these threads coming from Europeans than from Americans? Have you attained a much greater degree of perfection in all this , or is it something else?

No offense, but the one thing you personally have specialised in, especially in the context of this thread, is to comment on how various aspects of EU politics are unnatural, illogical, unfair, unfeasible, cowardly and lacking a certain sanity. (I am obviously not quoting literally here, since yours is often a more sophisticated word choice than I would be able to muster here in improvisation, but I think this is a fair enough summarisation).

In this light, and since your perspective on the matter is rarely shared by more than a relatively small minority in Europe, outside the UK, it's rather odd for you to chastise the Europeans for coming up with too many "sectarian" comments on your political system ...

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I have certainly been critical (as you said) of many European external policies, particularly those that relate to the United States. However, apart from curiosity and some admiration about the formative process of the European Union, I have not offered any criticisms about the internal political processes in any European nation. It is, perhaps a small distinction, but it is one I did make in the statement you quoted. I don't consider myself to be a competent judge of the internal affairs or political processes of any European nation. I don't know enough, and the matter is really not my concern. External policies, which can and do affect my country and my life, are another matter - on both sides of the issue and the ocean.

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Todays 'Independent' has a nice story about 'EU-myths', not only a theme in the UK but here as well :wink:

Quote:

Euro-myths? Most of them are just plain bananas...
By Stephen Castle in Brussels and Andrew Grice
25 March 2004

As EU leaders prepare to relaunch negotiations on the draft treaty today they will put Tony Blair renewed pressure to retreat over one of his famous "red lines" on the proposed European Union constitution.

Signs of concessions from Spain and Poland, which blocked a deal on the constitution in December, have put Mr Blair under intense pressure to agree to axe the national veto in some areas of judicial co-operation.

The moves towards agreement on the constitution have been accompanied by another batch of headlines in the Eurosceptic press - such as The Sun - announcing that there are just 12 weeks to stop the creation of the "Euro Superstate".

In the wake of the Madrid bombings and a new desire to co-operate with partner countries on anti-terrorism, senior diplomats believe that Mr Blair will find it impossible to resist a move to qualified majority voting in some new areas.

His hand will also be weakened by moves to achieve a compromise over a voting system for an enlarged EU. Plans now under discussion would make it easier to block decisions taken by qualified majority than under the current proposals. That will make it harder for the UK to resist extending the scope of majority voting.

One diplomat argued: "Blair will be under pressure on some of his red lines. Some movement from him is a precondition of getting a deal." An official added: "If it is easier to block decisions by majority voting, that means more areas should surely move to that system."

The Government's White Paper last year committed it to insisting on unanimity for "areas of vital national interest such as tax, social security, defence, key areas of criminal procedural law, and the system of own resources [the EU's revenue-raising mechanism]".

At a two-day summit in Brussels starting today, Bertie Ahern, the Prime Minister of Ireland, which holds the EU presidency, is likely to win backing for a pledge to get a deal. The Irish Prime Minister said this week that he hopes to clinch agreement by June, when his country's presidency ends.

The incoming Spanish government has said it will consider a modified version of the plan. Under this system, decisions taken by qualified majority voting would pass if supported by half of all member states representing 60 per cent of the EU population.

Those ratios will have to change to get agreement from Spain and Poland. The latest plan under discussion would shift the figures to 55 per cent of countries and 65 per cent of population. But there would be added safeguards to ensure that three big countries alone could not block, or that decisions could be held up by the smallest states. Any blocking minority would have to have 12 per cent of the EU population.

The summit, which has been overshadowed by the Madrid bombings, will welcome the appointment of a new EU anti-terrorism chief, likely to be Klaas de Vries, a former Dutch justice minister. European leaders are set to demand tighter security checks on ferries and to boost intelligence-sharing.

The subject which was scheduled to dominate discussion - economic reform - has been relegated to the sidelines. After a dispute with France and Germany, the UK has defeated a push to speed up moves towards Europe-wide corporate tax harmonisation.

Although Downing Street professed to be "fairly relaxed" about the revival of talks on the constitution, ministers admitted privately that the Government would rather the issue were left until after the general election expected in May next year. But they dismissed speculation that the Prime Minister would seek to delay agreement on the new blueprint to keep the issue off the domestic political agenda in the run-up to the election.

Yesterday Downing Street denied a climbdown over judicial co-operation and and insisted that the way British courts operated could not be changed against the Government's wishes. But Michael Ancram, the shadow Foreign Secretary, said: "It shouldn't surprise anyone that another of Tony Blair's red lines have disappeared. The whole story of this EU constitution has been marked by Labour incompetence and U-turn."

Michael Howard, the Tory leader, said yesterday that the proposals would mean the biggest constitutional change since the 17th century. A Tory government would re-open negotiations on it, he said.

The Opposition believes there is a real prospect that Parliament will vote in favour of a referendum on the constitution, a move Mr Blair argues is unnecessary. The Government's decision to drop plans to expel the remaining 92 hereditary peers from the House of Lords will increase the chances that the Lords will vote for a referendum. Eurosceptic Labour MPs may then join forces with Tories and Liberal Democrats to back the idea in the Commons.

Mr Blair faces a dilemma over how to handle the negotiations. If he were to obstruct progress, it would put his strategy of "positive engagement" in Europe at risk. But if he signs up to the constitution, it could cost him the support of some voters and newspapers, such as The Sun and The Times, both owned by Rupert Murdoch, at the general election.

THE QUEEN

The Myth

The Queen will be stripped of her powers as sovereign. (Based on the fact that the EU's Council of Ministers will gain a new president or chairman.)

The Reality

Nonsense. The UK is not the only country in the EU with a monarch (take Spain, Belgium, Denmark etc). It is the only country where this has become an issue.

THE UNITED STATES OF EUROPE

The Myth

The EU will be renamed the "United States of Europe". (The convention that drew up the draft constitution considered renaming the EU. The "United States of Europe was mentioned as one possibility.)

The Reality

Never a runner. The idea of "United States of Europe" was never formally proposed, nor was the alternative, "United Europe". The EU is destined to remain the boring old EU.

EU ARMY
The Myth

The EU will gain an army - "Britain in Secret EU Army Deal" D. Tel 29th November 2003

The Reality

Not true. The phrase "euro army" has spread because it presents an easy phrase to encapsulate EU effort to beef up its defence capabilities.

Decisions to deploy troops remain with member states. The EU is planning voluntary co-operation among its military, not coercion.

BANANAS

The Myth

Bendy bananas are banned by Brussels. (Bananas must not be excessively curved.)

The Reality

Bananas are classified according to quality and size. Individual governments and the industry have their own standards, the latter's particularly stringent. The European Commission was asked to draft legislation in this area. Following extensive consultation, the proposed quality standards were adopted in Council in 1994.

NO MORE UN FOR UK

The Myth

The UK will lose its seat at the UN to the EU. (Presented as inevitable that Britain and France should hand over their permanent seats on the UN Security Council to the EU)

The Reality

Untrue. The UK and France would have to agree; French are not even keen to share their seat with Germany - supposedly their closest ally. London won't talk about sharing with anyone.

TAXATION

The Myth

The EU will control taxes. Sceptic spin is that the EU assumes the role and powers of national governments. The Inland Revenue might as well relocate to Frankfurt.

The Reality

Nonsense. Never on the agenda. Decisions on tax rates are set by national governments.

CAR BOOT SALES

The Myth

Brussels threatens charity shops and car boot sales. (It is claimed a Brussels directive required retailers to prove full "traceability" of the goods they sell.)

The Reality

There is no such threat to car boot sales, charity shops or jumble sales. The legislation concerned has been in force since 1992.

JUSTICE, PART 1

The Myth

The European public prosecutor would take charge of criminal cases in this country. (The EU constitution sets out plans for a European public prosecutor)

The Reality

Distortion of truth. The prosecutor suggested in the constitution would only pursue cases of fraud involving EU cash. Would not affect internal criminal cases.

JUSTICE, PART 2

The Myth

Criminals will be removed from Britain to face charges without a right of appeal and could spend months in jail before being charged.

The Reality

True. The EU arrest warrant means that a Greek magistrate can order your arrest and there will be no extradition procedures. The government has already agreed to this measure as part of its anti-terror package. Many civil liberties organisations are concerned.

FOREIGN AFFAIRS

The Myth

Foreign Secretary will lose power to a new EU foreign minister. (EU plan to appoint a new foreign minister to give it a greater role internationally is presented as a plan to strip national ministers of their power.)

The Reality

Because of the way diplomacy works, the EU foreign minister will have to win the backing of national capitals, particularly of the big member states, before acting.

TAX-FREE SHOPPING

The Myth

European Commission officials will get tax- free shopping. There is an exclusive, secret Brussels supermarket where Eurocrats can shop tax-free, called the Economat

The Reality

True, up to a point. The shop was not tax-free, all prices included normal Belgian VAT rates. It was run on a non-profit basis and managed by Commission officials. It was not secret and was set up in the 1960s to provide EU officials with products not readily available in Brussels. The shop has now been closed.

BRANDY BUTTER

The Myth

Brandy butter. The traditional accompaniment to Christmas pudding, will be banned or renamed "brandy spreadable fat" because it doesn't have enough butter in it.

The Reality

Accurate labelling is required to ensure butter substitutes or margarine cannot be passed off as butter. There are exceptions made for certain products, including brandy butter.

BRITAIN'S BORDERS

The Myth

EU will take charge of Britain's borders.

The Reality

The fact that the EU is boosting co-operation on border control and asylum policy has been presented as the slippery slope towards the ending of British border controls. The UK has an opt-out from the Schengen Treaty for passport-free travel across borders. That will not change.

NORTH SEA OIL

The Myth

UK will lose control of North Sea oil "McConnell's EU fears over North Sea Oil", Scotsman 2nd December 2003

The Reality

Claims that Brussels would be able to seize British resources under emergency measures to secure Europe's energy supplies were based on an ambiguously worded phrase in the constitution and caused anxiety among some oil companies. The clause has been tightened up and the Government is now happy.

IDENTITY CARDS

The Myth

We will all have to carry EU identity cards. (Almost all other EU countries have identity cards, and closer European integration means it is seen as inevitable that the practice will spread to Britain.)

The Reality

The government is moving in the direction of introducing ID cards. But that has little to do with the EU. It wants tighter controls for its own reasons.

MIGRATION

The Myth
Brussels will control immigration. (Presented as the inevitable consequence of a push to create a common EU immigration policy.)

The Reality

A common immigration policy tries to find agreement on the general principles, but leaves the decision on immigration into specific countries to them.

CONDOMS

The Myth

The EU has decreed that condom dimensions should be harmonised across the seamless Continent.

The Reality

Fact, but not guilty. The EU is not involved in setting condom standards. Blame The European Standardisation Committee (CEN), a voluntary body made up of national standards agencies and affiliated industry/consumer organisations from 19 European countries. It has nothing to do with the EU.

DESIGNER GOODS

The Myth

Brussels has imposed a European ban on shops selling cheaper designer goods, meaning that supermarkets could not undercut official outlets for certain brands.

The Reality

Fact: Again, a case of mistaken identity and nothing to do with the European Commission or the EU. Judges at The European Court of Justice, (based in Luxembourg by the way, and not Brussels) were responsible for the ruling, which the UK agreed with.

WELFARE

The Myth

Britain will lose control of welfare payments - presented as another power grab by Brussels as its appetite for meddling in national issues grows.

The Reality

Nonsense. The only proposals for axing the national veto in social security affects migrant workers. The UK is determined to block even that.

CUCUMBERS

The Myth

Cucumbers have to be straight

The Reality

The industry demands grading rules to show what quality and quantity they would get when purchasing a box, unseen, from another country, which puts restrictions on cucumber measurements. Nothing is banned under these rules which are guidelines for traders.

THE SUPER-EU

The Myth

EU will become like a superstate with its own president, flag and anthem. (The EU maintains all the trappings of statehood. As one Eurosceptic once argued: if it looks like an elephant and walks like an elephant, it is an elephant.)

The Reality

Misleading. The president of the Council will spend life co-ordinating committees; the flag exists at the moment, as does the EU's unofficial anthem: Beethoven's Ode to Joy.

SOURCE

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"CONDOMS

The Myth

The EU has decreed that condom dimensions should be harmonised across the seamless Continent.

The Reality

Fact, but not guilty. The EU is not involved in setting condom standards. Blame The European Standardisation Committee (CEN), a voluntary body made up of national standards agencies and affiliated industry/consumer organisations from 19 European countries. It has nothing to do with the EU. "

I remember there was some heated debate on the Italian parliament a few years ago about this bureacratic procedure.
Italian condoms were not meeting the standards, and, in a nationalist outburst, some parlamentarian proposed that two types of condoms be sold in Italy. The snug teeny weeny standard European condoms for the tourists, and the big ones for the locals, the only real men in the continent.

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<Should I really wonder that this is fbaezer's only comment? And about the 'WHY' it is so> Laughing

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Hah! Italians are small. Everybody knows that. Very Happy

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"Tell me what you bragg about, and I'll tell what you're lacking", goes a Mexican saying.

Do you think I'll be digressing too much (and being a little too rude) if I say that referrals about them Italians often include a condition known as ejaculatio præcox?

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Quote:

EU revives constitution ambition
European Union leaders meeting in Brussels have revived the drive to agree a landmark constitution.
The leaders set themselves a mid-June deadline to broker a deal. Negotiations collapsed last year amid an acrimonious row over voting rights.

"We have a changed atmosphere tonight," declared Irish Prime Minister Bertie Ahern, the current EU president.

A range of security measures was also agreed, including the naming of an anti-terrorism co-ordinator.

Dutch politician Gijs de Vries, who starts work on Monday, will pool the gathering of Europe-wide intelligence.

Diplomatic fruit

The draft constitution was designed to allow the EU to function smoothly once 10 new members are admitted in May.

But talks broke down in December over the distribution of power between Germany and France on one hand, and Poland and Spain on the other.

People were taking fixed positions and refusing to move. [But] everybody tonight indicated that they would move towards compromise
Irish Prime Minister Bertie Ahern

Weeks of patient diplomacy by the Irish have now borne fruit, say correspondents.
"We all want to see a new constitution in place as soon as we can," Mr Ahern told a news conference after the meeting of leaders of the 25 current and future EU member states.

He said leaders had unanimously committed themselves to reaching a deal by their next summit on 17-18 June.

"It will help the enlarged European Union to work better and to do more for its citizens - in the end that is the most important thing," he said.

"The difficulty was that people were taking fixed positions and refusing to move. Everybody tonight indicated that they would move towards compromise."

'Double majority'

Despite many points of agreement on the draft constitution, leaders were unable to bridge the gap over voting rights the last time they met.

Poland and Spain, which acquired disproportionate powers to their populations under the Nice Treaty, were opposed to the simplified "double majority" voting system laid out in the draft constitution.

This attempts to redress the balance in favour of bigger states.

But both countries have now indicated that they may be ready to compromise.

The decisive moment was probably the shock election victory earlier this month by the socialists in Spain in the aftermath of the Madrid bomb blasts, correspondents say.

The attacks also served to put the obstacles in the way of an agreement into some perspective, they say.

The new Spanish prime minister has taken a more conciliatory tone than his predecessor, Jose Maria Aznar.
And on Thursday, Polish Foreign Minister Wlodzimierz Cimoszewicz said for the first time that Poland did not rule out "the possibility of a compromise based on the double majority".

But the BBC's Europe correspondent Chris Morris warns that hard work remains ahead.

Even if they succeed by June, the constitutional treaty still has to be ratified in every member state before it becomes law, he says, and that will pose awkward questions for many European leaders who may find the proposed constitution galvanises opposition at home.

Anti-terrorism pledges

The apparent breakthrough on the constitution came after the leaders had agreed a number of steps aimed at showing Europe united in the face of terrorism:

Implementing already agreed counter-terrorism measures, such as a pan-European arrest warrant, harmonising penalties for terrorist crimes and the freezing of assets held by outlawed groups

Retaining all telecommunications data, including mobile phone records, for an agreed minimum time to enable intelligence agencies to track calls

Stepping up security at EU ports.

The BBC's William Horsley in Brussels says persuading EU governments to share more of their sensitive information will not be easy.

There are also significant differences over how to respond to the terror attacks blamed on Islamic militants, as well as how to treat Europe's growing Muslim population.
© BBC MMIV

source

Seems, it will get towards a final version of the constitution perhaps faster the in US history :wink:

Altough I wonder a bit, why all this former "strong opposition' seems to have vanished - well, not really :wink:

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Well, in February several here were rejoicingly waiting for the end of the EU, since that would come re the EU-constitution.

This week, Irish Prime Minister Bertie Ahearn, whose country currently holds the EU Presidency, said (on Thursday it was) that European leaders meeting at the latest European Council summit have agreed to finalize a deal on a new European constitution by mid-June.

Seems to be out of interest - now.

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More Time to Party in Frankfurt/Oder

"Barkeepers and storeowners in Frankfurt/Oder will be allowed to stay open longer during the festivities marking Poland's entry into the European Union on May 1. The German city, located on the border to Poland, announced Friday it would allow pubs to serve their guests until 3 a.m. [1] between April 30 and May 2. Retailers could open their shops on the first, which is actually a public holiday, from 1 p.m. to 6 p.m [2]. EU expansion is being celebrated on both sides of the Oder River, which divides Germany and Poland."

source: regional papers, dw-world

[1] In Frankfurt/O, pubs usually close at 1 a.m.
[2] Shops are closed on Sundays and public holidays in Germany (may be open about 6 times/year on specila occasions, due to state laws. (In holiday ressorts/spas, shops are open as well as at railway stations/airports.)

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Frankfurt/Oder, I saw a report about that! But I'm afraid I don't remember anymore what they talked about, so there goes my interesting post... Rolling Eyes

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Hey Walter, other Europeans, I'm curious, what are the different parties' election slogans in your country these European elections?

I'm asking because the Dutch parties' slogans provide as illustrative a snapshot of what the debate on Europe here is like and about as any ...

First, there is the official government information campaign to remind people to vote. The slogan, appropriately well-meaning and halfhearted simultaneously, is: "Europa, best belangrijk". I.e., "Europe, really kind of important" ...

Then there's the different parties. Lets take 'em from left to right. Note how they've all taken the occasion to come out with some droll wordplay or such. You dont really get the impression they're about to wage partisan cut-throat warfare here.

On the far left, there's the Socialist Party (populist Eurosceptic, 6% in the last elections, 9% in current polls). It started out with a play on the official campaign's slogan, with posters and stickers saying: "Dit Europa. Best gevaarlijk" (This Europe. Really kind of dangerous), and other variations on the theme (really kind of risky, really kind of undemocratic, etc). Midway the campaign they switched to posters that feature a small, really cute doggie - with the slogan "Send a guarddog to Europe". (awww)

Next up is the Green Left (critically pro-Europe, 5%/6%). Another pun. Something "links laten liggen" (let lie left) in Dutch means, not bother with it, shun it. "Links" also means left-wing. So the GL turned it around, using "rechts" (right-wing) instead: "Laat Europa niet rechts liggen" (Don't let Europe lie right). Kinda awkward. But it seems to work. **

The Labour Party (28%/31%) rehashes its national slogan ("strong and social"), in what is perhaps the most pro-EU slogan of all: "Nederland sterk en sociaal in Europa".

The Democrats (4%/4%) have the most puzzling poster. It features a big cow and the slogan "Yelling 'boo' is easy". I guess they're trying to say that constructive criticism is the Democrats' way. I keep thinking its the poster of the Party for the Animals. (Yes, we have such a party).

The Christian Democratic Appeal (29%/21%) slogan is: "For a place of our own in Europe". The ambiguity slips in again. For Europe, but ... please leave us our safe little homestead.

The "People's Party for Freedom and Democracy" (19%/20% - thats the right-wing liberals, the conservative liberals so to say) put the same thing much more stridently. "Voor Europa - maar er zijn wel grenzen!". Another wordplay. With "er zijn wel grenzen", imagine Archie Bunker, postulating, "but there's gotta be limits/rules (dont even think you can get away with just anything)!". But "grenzen" also means (national) borders. Gettit?

They're out-Fortuyned by the List Pim Fortuyn (5%/3%) though, whose slogan is truly a piece of genius. Rarely before has anyone encapsulated all the resentful, cantankerous, conspirational and self-victimising suspicion of the late Pim's followers in just five words like this: "Heeft iemand u iets gevraagd?" (Did anyone ask you anything!?).

Note that the far left and the far right neatly seam into each other. Its a circle, not a line, dont you know.

** (Leaflets of the two parties couldnt be more different. The SP uses rabblerousing rhetorics to shore up people's sense that its all crooks and spongers over there in Brussels, while the GL leaflet boasts about the various laws the Green MEP's have helped achieve - like, oil tankers now need to be double-wanded, so we wont have any more disasters like with the Prestige. Yeh, that kind of thing. But I guess there's also a small window of communality: after all, the GL emphasizes that the current EU isnt what it should be and that's why you should get involved - while the SP notes that it isnt against the EU per se - just against "this" Europe.)

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Oops - hit "submit" before I'd finished it. Now its finished.

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From what I've read, in Spain it goes like this:

PSOE (Socialist): "Nos gusta Europa" (We like Europe) "Volvemos a Europa" (We go back to Europe)

PP (Conservative): "Contigo, fuertes en Europa" (With you, strong in Europe), this is to oppose PSOE's "weak" attitude about the relative strength of Spain within the EU.

IU (United Left) : "Otra Europa es posible" (Another Europe is possible).

The three main nationalist parties (Bloque Nacionalista Galego -Galicia-, Convengència I Unió -Catalonia- and Partido Nacionalista Vasco -Basque Country-) concur in one list: GalEusCa-Pueblos Unidos de Europa (United Peoples of Europe), with different slogans for each region: "Euzkal Herritarrenzaka Itzarra- Una estrella para Euskadi" (A star for the Basque Country), "Unic referent nacionalista capac d'actuar amb mans lliures- Unico referente nacionalista capaz de actuar con las manos libres" (The Only nationalist reference able to act with free hands), "Galiza: unha nación europea - Galicia, una nación europea" (Galicia, a European nation).

As you see, not much euroskepticism there.

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Had to do some hunting, but here's an article I read a a week or so ago:

EU BUSINESS: Apathy winning the vote two weeks before EU elections: survey

Quote:

Less than half of voters in the 25-nation EU intend to vote in European Parliament elections in mid-June -- and only a third know when the elections are, according to a new survey out Thursday.

The first elections to be held after the European Union expanded this month from 15 to 25 nations risk being a flop in the new member states if the survey findings are confirmed ...

From this, one might conjecture the predominant election slogan is "Ho Hum".

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Yes, fbaezer, such enthusiasm! We're positively jaded in comparison ...

Timber, <grins> ...

Perhaps this is an appropriate moment to recount this tidbit from the newspaper today. Dutch reporter interviewing Vytautas Landsbergis, the former Prime Minister of Lithuania (the man who led the country into independence from the Soviet Union).

"I don't know where your euroscepsis comes from", [Landsbergis] said with a sarcastic smile, "but if the new [European] Constitution is passed, you will be free to depart from the European Union."

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I would really be ehm thrilled to see the Party for the Animals getting a seat in the European parliament... I read an article in our local newspaper, in which the leaders of eight parties (all mentioned by nimh) had to answer nine questions concerning Europe. One of the questions was about whether or not Turkey should enter the EU. The answer of the Party for the Animals: "well first they do have to change their policy concerning animal slaughtering". That was all.

Rolling Eyes

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Protest votes overshadow EU poll
Thursday, June 10, 2004 Posted: 2:33 PM EDT (1833 GMT)
LONDON, England -- Voters in Britain and the Netherlands have kicked off a four-day cross-continent election for representatives to an enlarged European Parliament.
Before it is over, voters in 10 new European Union countries -- mainly former communist states -- will have helped elect 732 members to the legislative assembly for the first time.
Based in Strasbourg, France and Brussels, Belgium, the Parliament has growing influence over EU legislation on issues including finance, food, trade and the environment.
However, analysts say few people vote in European elections on such matters, with many citizens seeing the Parliament has having little influence on their daily lives.
Instead the polls become a popularity test for national governments, with voters casting protest ballots for parties they wouldn't want in their national assemblies.
In Britain, some opponents of Prime Minister Tony Blair -- who backed the U.S.-led war in Iraq -- have tried to make the mid-term elections a referendum on Iraq. (Full story)
Others, like the advancing United Kingdom Independence Party, are focusing on the European Union itself. UKIP wants Britain to quit the EU immediately and is expected to make gains in Thursday's election.
There were also warnings of polling turmoil in four English regions where the British government has pushed ahead with a massive experiment in all-postal voting against the advice of the independent Electoral Commission.
In France, Jean-Marie Le Pen's far-right National Front may double its Parliament seats to 10, The Associated Press predicted. Opposition Socialists also are likely to benefit as voters protest President Jacques Chirac's economic reforms.
Meanwhile, Spain's new Socialist prime minister, Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero, may be looking for support after fulfilling his election pledge to pull his country's troops out of Iraq.
In Eastern Europe, nationalist parties that campaigned against giving up powers to join the EU are campaigning for seats in Parliament.
And in the Netherlands, more than a dozen parties are fielding candidates in an election expected to embarrass Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende's center-right government, Reuters reported.
"The problem with these elections is they don't really affect me and don't seem to be that important. I think (this month's football) Euro Cup is more important," Amsterdam restaurant owner Fared Assarte told Reuters.
Carl Valetton, 36, a voter in Amsterdam, added: "This election is not about something that is going to truly redefine Europe. But if the European Union is going to work, we all have to take part in it."
Dutch officials have said they will release provisional results Thursday night, sparking a row with Brussels over what it says is an EU-wide embargo until all voting is finished Sunday.
After Britain and the Netherlands finish voting Thursday evening, the Czech Republic starts a two-day poll Friday. The Republic of Ireland also votes Friday.
On Saturday, Italy starts a two-day poll. Malta and Latvia also vote Saturday. Voters in the rest of the EU cast their ballots Sunday.
Nearly 350 million EU citizens are eligible to vote in the elections, which send representatives to Parliament for five-year terms.
The EU expanded on May 1 to form a 25-nation bloc of more than 450 million people.

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As au's post already noted, the Netherlands are defying an EU ambargo by already releasing the election's results for our country tonight.

(I don't know what the EU is worried about - its not like some Czech voter is going to say, "Oh my god, I'd better vote Christian-Democrat, cause I just heard that in the Netherlands, they lost!", is it? Perhaps some day.)

Sooo ... here's what you've anxiously been waiting for! The preliminary results for the Netherlands.

First off, note that - in spite of all the talk of Euroscepticism - turnout was almost a full 10% higher than in 1999!

Second, the strange victory of one Paul van Buitenen and his "Transparent Europe". Van Buitenen was an EU civil servant who opened the book on some of the semi-corrupt money-squandering practices - they tried to fired him and now he is a politician! He might have picked up many of the former Fortuynists (in as far as they voted at all), but it's pretty non-political - I know that some of our (Green Left) voters went his way, too.

OK, the results, compared with the last European elections, back in 1999, and last year's national elections. Note that, since the turnout is still only roughly half of that in the national elections, that totally skews the results. (Low turnout tends to favour the Christian parties and the Greens and hurt Labour, the Socialists, liberals and Fortuynists. You can even see the difference in turnout between last time and this time impact the results - the Christian Union probably got about the same number of votes, but that amounted to 3% (and a seat) fewer this time.)

Code:



                               EU 2004    EU 1999  National 2003

Turnout                         39,1%      29,9%      79,9%



Christian Democratic Appeal     24,5%      26,9%      28,6%

Labour Party                    23,6%      20,1%      27,3%

PFD (right-wing liberal)        13,1%      19,7%      17,9%

Socialist Party                  7,0%       5,0%       6,3%

List Pim Fortuyn                 2,6%       --         5,7%

Green Left                       7,4%      11,8%       5,1%

Democrats (liberal)              4,2%       5,8%       4,1%

Christian Union / SRP            5,9%       8,7%       3,7%

Party for the Animals            3,2%       --         0,5%

Transparent Europe               7,3%       --         --

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