Wallström: "Veel frustratie bij Europees Parlement over mislukken grondwet" (en)

Web-blog Margot Wallström, 5 October 2005, following her appearance before the EP Constitutional Committee and the EP Cultural Committee:

The sense of frustration was so deep that I could almost touch it when I met with the Constitutional Affairs Committee in the European Parliament the other day. They "mourn" the loss of their issue - a constitutional treaty for the EU - and they look to the Commission for answers and action. I warned against any initiatives meaning only "constitutional engineering" = coming up with new ways of rescuing the proposal without connecting it to a discussion about the political content. My view is that only by engaging in a discussion about the added value of European cooperation can we create confidence in the solutions proposed in the constitution. Only by listening to citizens concerns can we find the proper policy response.

The next day I was in the Cultural Committee and met very much the same debate. I presented the different activities planned by the Commission to get the "period of reflection" started and I also admitted my fear that one year is too short and that few Member States have elaborated plans for reflection_ To "Birgit": I would very much regret if the Dutch politicians do not engage in a debate about the future of Europe.

In contrast to the people who think the EU is trying to implement the Constitution by the `backdoor` (not true), other people seem to think that the Commission has stopped work altogether. Also not true. Our work programme of course continues under the existing Treaties. Until the end of the year there are quite a lot of policy proposals on the agenda, including for example proposals on renewable sources of energy, a strategy for Africa and the free movement of services. Just yesterday we launched a website where consumers can compare prices of roaming mobile phone calls across Europe. It is important to understand that many of the "everyday" issues have to do with making sure that competition rules to allow fair prices for consumers are followed and if necessary we impose fines on companies. Competition policy is one area where I think the benefits of the EU are clear. Preventing illegal State aid, breaking up international cartels and prosecuting companies who try to drive others out of international markets are something Member States can not do alone.