Margot Wallström
Member of the European Commission responsible for Institutional Relations and Communication Strategy

Opening remarks to the European Parliament Plenary, Corbett/Mendez de Vigo report

European Parliament Plenary Session
Strasbourg, 11 January 2005

President, Honourable Members,

The Constitution before us today would not have been possible without the European Parliament.

The European Parliament has played a crucial role in strengthening the foundations of our common enterprise: not least through the substantial contributions made by your members during the European Convention.

It would also not have been possible without the European Convention that provided such a dynamic, open and innovative way to negotiate our founding treaties.

The involvement of the European Parliament in this unprecedented process culminates today with the adoption of this excellent report, which conveys a clear message about the benefits of the Constitution and the need for its ratification.

So let me wholeheartedly congratulate you, and in particular the Committee of Constitutional Affairs and the two rapporteurs - Richard Corbett and Iñigo Mendez de Vigo.

The Commission fully supports your resolution. We firmly believe that the Constitution allows the Union to make significant improvements.

In simple terms:

• For the first time, the powers, competences, rights and duties of the Union are set in a single Constitution. The Constitution consolidates and simplifies half a century of Treaty changes allowing us to move from 12 basic treaty acts to a single text: it makes the Union more open and simpler to understand.
• The Constitution modernises the institutional structure, increases the powers of the European Parliament and provides for citizens to actively participate in the decision-making process by an initiative of one million signatures: we have more democracy.
• The Constitution sets out in 54 concise articles the fundamental rights we will guarantee to our citizens. The Union will also for the first time accede to the European Convention on Human Rights: more rights for our citizens.

In these three simple concepts: more rights, more democracy and more openness we can explain why this Constitution should be ratified.

Of course, we would have certainly wished to be more ambitious in certain policy areas, but the final result is the best compromise possible in the current political situation.

I also accept that people have fears about this Constitution. It is not a perfect text and we should not hide from responding to these concerns. Our latest EuroBarometer shows that 68% of our citizens support the idea of a European Constitution. Other opinion polls show us that many people feel that they are inadequately informed about the content of the Constitution. Your report has made a good start - by so clearly rejecting some of the mis-conceptions and scare stories about the Constitution.

The Constitution provides a range of good reasons for the "Euro- specialists" to be voting yes. But they are not always the reasons that will persuade a single mother in Gdansk or a shipyard worker in Spain.

The ratification of the Constitution is an opportunity to debate about what kind of Europe we want.

I welcome this opportunity to remind us of what Europe has achieved and what Europe stands for.

• Back in the mid 1980s the vision of creating a true single market seemed a bridge too far. And yet it happened, bringing in its wake economic dynamism from which we still benefit. To cite one simple example: the fact that we do not have to go through customs at the borders has dramatically reduced costs and delivery times. In one single step we have removed the need for 60 million VAT documents per year.
• The idea of creating a zone of free movement. Today, the younger generation treat this as a right and takes it for granted. In the same way that they expect the Union to ensure a clean environment and cross-border co-operation on public health.
• Today, in 12 countries of the EU we have a piece of Europe in our pockets. Today the euro is taken for granted across the Union with the new Member States joining the queue to introduce it.
• Finally, first through membership of Greece, Spain and Portugal and now with the 10 new Member States we have helped to guarantee democracy and the rule of law across the whole continent.

Mr President, Honourable Members,

We must now turn to the ratification of the Constitution. While we will respect our different constitutional roles in relation to the national ratification processes we cannot tolerate that the debate is confused by myths about the content of the Constitution.

All of us have a duty to make available clear and reliable information on what the Constitution does and the benefits that it can bring. In doing so, we have to compare the results of the Constitution with the current situation.

Lithuania and Hungary have already ratified the Constitution. I would in particular like to pay tribute to Lithuania and the speaker of its Parliament who is with us today.

Now, we must start to demonstrate the concrete impact that the Constitution can have on the daily lives of the people we represent.

Indeed, we do not lack good examples in this respect:

• As I said earlier, the inclusion of the Charter of Fundamental Rights is far from a symbolic innovation. Citizens will have a catalogue of rights and principles, whose respect by the public authorities - be them European or national - they will be entitled to invoke before the judges;
• The possibility of concrete participation to the functioning of the Union is extended far beyond the election of the members of the European Parliament. The "citizens' initiative" will render for the first time the European citizens protagonists of the legislative process;
• The modernisation of the area of freedom, security and justice will allow the Union to respond to the growing demand for more effective European action in the field of border controls, asylum and immigration. The same is true for the judicial and police cooperation: the Constitution lays the foundations of a single area of liberties and guarantees.
• The new provisions on public health will provide higher safety quality standards. The Union will be able to intervene in a more effective way to prevent and fight against cross-border health threats, like avian flu or the bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE).
• Finally, in these days we cannot avoid to think about the tragic events in the South-East of Asia. The Union is already playing a key role in providing humanitarian aid and contributing to the political, economic and social reconstruction in that area. The new provisions on civil protection - which entrust the Union with the task of promoting consistency in international civil-protection work - will allow us in the future to make our international action more effective.

Of course, we have already put in place a number of initiatives aimed at informing the public about the content of the Constitution. The Commission has produced written and audiovisual material, developed a website, promoted and finances information relays and sponsored seminars and other public initiatives.

The European Council has supported our efforts, calling on the Member States to improve their communication capacity about European issues in the context of the process of ratification of the Constitution.

Now it is time to change to a higher gear. I seize this occasion to also call on you to examine the possibility of putting in place joint communication initiatives with us, which can maximize the impact of our initiatives. I think in particular to the possibility of organizing media events, at both European and national level, during a so-called "European week", around the 9^th May 2005.

In the meantime, the Commission will not refrain from developing other ideas, which can assist the Member States in the elaboration and implementation of their national communication strategies. I can also assure you that Commissioners will be active in the debate on the Constitution and the future of Europe.

Securing the ratification of the Constitutional Treaty is the main and most important concern for the Member States and for the European institutions. But while we do not intend to anticipate application of the Constitution we must devote some efforts to ensure a smooth entry into force of the Constitution when the ratification procedures will be successfully finalised.

Mr President,

The Commission has been engaged in this process from the start. We are proud of the text of the Constitution and will do our utmost to ensure it sees the light of day.

I remain committed to dialogue with the European Parliament. Our work does not stop today. I look forward to debating these issues in more detail with the Constitutional Affairs Committee and joining you on different platforms to present our case.

In conclusion, I would like to return to my three simple concepts: more rights, more democracy and more openness. This year we will celebrate 15 years since the rebirth of democracy in Eastern Europe. Setting aside all the other provisions of the Constitution, these three concepts alone underline why countries have joined the European Union and why the Commission will defend this Constitution.