FOLLOWING THE EUROPEAN UNION

they all look happy ...

Have you folks discussed Europe's view of the US' handling of the Hurricane Katrina aftermath?

MEPs work on plans to revive EU constitution

19.09.2005 - 17:39 CET | By Honor Mahony EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS -

With the EU constitution on the political backburner, some MEPs are trying to ensure that the European Parliament seizes the initiative and comes up with concrete proposals on what to do next.

Two MEPs charged with drawing up a report on the matter already have some preliminary ideas on how to get the EU out of its impasse, following the rejection of the constitution in France and the Netherlands before the summer.

Initial treaty
Under these ideas, there would be an initial treaty next year containing all points of the constitution that are not considered disputed.

UK liberal MEP Andrew Duff, one of the report's authors, told the EUobserver, that it could contain articles dealing with the institutions and the decision-making process - he suggested these are areas where there is broad consensus.

This initial treaty could then be agreed by the European and 25 national parliaments.

According to the UK MEP, a further convention would be needed to "complete the process" and deal with the policy part of the treaty - including economic governance, issues to do with the bloc's social model, the threshold for enlargement and the environment.

EU-wide referendum in 2009
The convention method was used to draw up the now-rejected EU constitution - and the precise issues highlighted by Mr Duff were among the ones that were most contested in the 16-month process.

The two MEPs envision that this definitive treaty, which has taken into account the concerns expressed by French and Dutch voters, would be ratified by popular vote across the EU on the same day as the European election in 2009.

Getting agreement
Mr Duff and the co-author of the report, Austrian Green MEP Johannes Voggenhuber, are hoping to get the report completed in time for the December plenary.

However, there will be a lot of backroom negotiating before it is agreed. Finnish Centre-right MEP Alexander Stubb, who is preparing a shadow report on the issue, told this news-site that the constitution "cannot be picked apart".

He outlined a five-step process currently being considered by his group, the European people's party. This would see a year of reflection this year, followed by a year of analysis of what went wrong in 2006, a year of preparation in 2007, a year of revision in 2008 and finally ratification in four year's time.

Seizing the initiative
Aside from differences on some of the details, several MEPs in these groups have agreed that it is up to the EU parliament to seize the moment and try to get the treaty in place by 2009.

"We have to exploit this period of reflection" said Mr Duff while Mr Stubb said that the parliament "needs to fill the vacuum".

Their words come as both the current UK and the subsequent Austrian presidency look likely to avoid the topic.

EU leaders agreed to a "period of reflection" in June after the French and Dutch rejections of the treaty, but as no easy political solution is forthcoming, they are set to sidestep the issue for as long as possible.

Senior UK diplomat in Brussels apologises to media for bungles

By Stephen Castle in Brussels
Published: 20 September 2005

Britain's most senior diplomat in Brussels has made a formal apology to the foreign media after ministerial meetings held in the UK generated some of the worst publicity for an EU presidency in recent memory.

Sir John Grant, the UK's ambassador to the EU, expressed his "wholehearted regret" after poor logistics, heavy-handed security and disastrous IT marred high-profile events.

After two meetings in Britain, the continental media mocked Tony Blair's plea for Europe to compete in the information age, noting the lack of reliable internet access at the UK's gathering.

The failings of the British rail network have also been highlighted and the off-hand treatment of journalists has been portrayed as symbolic of the UK's coolness towards the EU.

Meanwhile, an official complaint has been made to the British embassy in Berlin after a German journalist was barred from a meeting because he asked for an idle X-ray machine to be used to cut waiting time at a security check.

So chaotic were arrangements for journalists at an informal meeting of foreign ministers in Newport, south Wales, earlier this month, that the Foreign Secretary, Jack Straw, said publicly he could "only apologise" for a lack of internet access.

Now Sir John has written to the journalists' association in Brussels, adding: "I wholeheartedly regret the inconvenience caused to you members by the unfortunate technical problems experienced at the EU foreign ministers meeting." One week after the Newport fiasco, similar problems arose at a meeting of justice and interior ministers in Newcastle-upon-Tyne.

Ironically, the UK representation to the EU had organised a successful trip for foreign journalists to London in July, designed to garner goodwill. The headlines since have been less sympathetic. The German press highlighted how a correspondent from the Berliner Zeitung, Gerold Büchner, was removed from the Newport meeting by police after asking for an idle X-ray machine to be switched on to save waiting time.

The influential Süddeutsche Zeitung recalled how Mr Blair asked Europe to react to "the economic and technical challenges from Asia instead of looking backwards," adding: "The British failed almost for a day to provide hundreds of participants with an internet connection. Even with old technologies, and with transport they had problems."

Referring to Mr Büchner, the paper concluded: "Perhaps, in his call to engage with Asia, Blair meant following the Chinese example of gagging journalists."

The Frankfurter Rundschau reported how the presidency "which had promised transparency and openness, succeeded in a few hours in driving hundreds of correspondents to fury."

Meanwhile, the Spanish agency Europa Press described "organisational chaos" and that "the difficulties and uncomfortable situation for the media added to the difficulties which many correspondents experienced getting to Newport using British railways, which yesterday collapsed for hours." The same agency reported that, in Newcastle, 100 workstations were provided although 400 journalists requested accreditation.

Meanwhile, the Catalan daily, Avui, told its readers: "Great Britain's lack of interest in the EU is noticeable during many [EU] legislative negotiations, in its absence from the eurozone and the significant number of eurosceptic MEPs. It was reflected yesterday in the bad organisation of the meeting. Journalists found themselves without enough telephones or places to work and without the means to send articles. 'It is chaos,' one minister said, adding another, unprintable, description."

Critics say Whitehall turf battles, lack of resources and an obsession with domestic media have helped create the problems with the foreign press.

Britain's most senior diplomat in Brussels has made a formal apology to the foreign media after ministerial meetings held in the UK generated some of the worst publicity for an EU presidency in recent memory.

Sir John Grant, the UK's ambassador to the EU, expressed his "wholehearted regret" after poor logistics, heavy-handed security and disastrous IT marred high-profile events.

After two meetings in Britain, the continental media mocked Tony Blair's plea for Europe to compete in the information age, noting the lack of reliable internet access at the UK's gathering.

The failings of the British rail network have also been highlighted and the off-hand treatment of journalists has been portrayed as symbolic of the UK's coolness towards the EU.

Meanwhile, an official complaint has been made to the British embassy in Berlin after a German journalist was barred from a meeting because he asked for an idle X-ray machine to be used to cut waiting time at a security check.

So chaotic were arrangements for journalists at an informal meeting of foreign ministers in Newport, south Wales, earlier this month, that the Foreign Secretary, Jack Straw, said publicly he could "only apologise" for a lack of internet access.

Now Sir John has written to the journalists' association in Brussels, adding: "I wholeheartedly regret the inconvenience caused to you members by the unfortunate technical problems experienced at the EU foreign ministers meeting." One week after the Newport fiasco, similar problems arose at a meeting of justice and interior ministers in Newcastle-upon-Tyne.

Ironically, the UK representation to the EU had organised a successful trip for foreign journalists to London in July, designed to garner goodwill. The headlines since have been less sympathetic. The German press highlighted how a correspondent from the Berliner Zeitung, Gerold Büchner, was removed from the Newport meeting by police after asking for an idle X-ray machine to be switched on to save waiting time.
The influential Süddeutsche Zeitung recalled how Mr Blair asked Europe to react to "the economic and technical challenges from Asia instead of looking backwards," adding: "The British failed almost for a day to provide hundreds of participants with an internet connection. Even with old technologies, and with transport they had problems."

Referring to Mr Büchner, the paper concluded: "Perhaps, in his call to engage with Asia, Blair meant following the Chinese example of gagging journalists."

The Frankfurter Rundschau reported how the presidency "which had promised transparency and openness, succeeded in a few hours in driving hundreds of correspondents to fury."

Meanwhile, the Spanish agency Europa Press described "organisational chaos" and that "the difficulties and uncomfortable situation for the media added to the difficulties which many correspondents experienced getting to Newport using British railways, which yesterday collapsed for hours." The same agency reported that, in Newcastle, 100 workstations were provided although 400 journalists requested accreditation.

Meanwhile, the Catalan daily, Avui, told its readers: "Great Britain's lack of interest in the EU is noticeable during many [EU] legislative negotiations, in its absence from the eurozone and the significant number of eurosceptic MEPs. It was reflected yesterday in the bad organisation of the meeting. Journalists found themselves without enough telephones or places to work and without the means to send articles. 'It is chaos,' one minister said, adding another, unprintable, description."

Critics say Whitehall turf battles, lack of resources and an obsession with domestic media have helped create the problems with the foreign press.

What exactly do you consider "pampered" about expecting there to be sufficient internet access for the accredited press at an intergovernmental-level meeting, Lord?