EU wants more powers in criminal matters
MARK BEUNDERMAN
08.05.2006 @ 17:46 CET
EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS - The European Commission will propose to EU leaders to move a large number of decisions on police and criminal matters from the national to the European level, aiming at elimitating national vetoes in this area.
Commission president Jose Manuel Barroso said in a speech on the future of Europe in Lisbon on Monday (8 May) "People are asking for 'more Europe' in order to combat terrorism and organised crime. It is our duty to respond to this appeal, with or without a constitution."
Decisions on standards for judicial evidence could come under the EU umbrella (Photo: OLAF)
The commission seeks "to transfer to the [European] Community a large number of the decisions in the fields of justice, freedom and security that can be dealt with more effectively at European level than at national level," he indicated.
Brussels proposes to use a so-called "passerelle" or "bridging" clause in the current EU treaty, which allows to shift policy areas from the "third" to the "first" pillar of EU decision-making.
In practical terms, this means that sensitive decisions such as on standards of evidence in judicial matters or cross-border police pursuits will become subject to proposals from the European Commission, scrutiny by the European Parliament and jurisdiction by the European Court of Justice.
Currently, these decisions are taken among member states, which can each block agreements using their national veto.
The national veto could still be retained when policies are shifted from the third to the first pillar, but "the commission prefers that decisions are taken by majority, as this is much more efficient" according to commission officials.
But for any move from unanimity to majority-voting, a unanimous vote by member states is first necessary, which makes the plan difficult to implement.
The Netherlands is one country where Brussels' proposal could crash, one commission official indicated, referring to Dutch uneasiness with growing EU powers as one reason why voters rejected the EU constitution in a referendum last year.
Another source hinted at likely resistance from other member states, saying that governments could give up their veto only in some justice and police decisions, while retaining it in others.
The commission proposal is set to be one dominating item of an EU foreign ministers' meeting on the future of Europe on 27-28 May, followed by a key EU leaders' summit in June.
The June summit will be held one year after EU leaders decided to hold a "period of reflection" on institutional issues following the French and Dutch "no" votes to the constitution.
Cherry-picking?
A commission official underlined that Mr Barroso's plan is not a means of "cherry picking" from the constitution text, which also proposes to "Europeanise" justice and police decisions.
"This is about fully using the possibilities foreseen in the current treaties," said the contact.
But Brussels' ideas are still set to raise suspicions of cherry-picking, as they are almost identical to last month's proposals by France - which is known for its preference for implementing only individual parts of the constitution.
Pro-EU constitution states such as Germany and Spain dislike cherry-picking, as they fear it could eventually frustrate ratification of the charter as a whole.
