Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2001-03-14-Speech-3-033"

Predicate	Value (sorted: default)
rdf:type	lpv_eu:Speech2
dcterms:Date	"2001-03-14"^^xsd:date2
dcterms:Is Part Of	lp_eu:Follow-up to Nice2
dcterms:Language	"de"^^xsd:language2
lpv:document identification number	"en.20010314.1.3-033"2
lpv:hasSubsequent	lp_eu:2001-03-14-Speech-3-0342
lpv:speaker	lp:Johannes Voggenhuber2
lpv:spokenAs	member; Delegation to the EU-Russia Parliamentary Cooperation Committee (1999-09-28--2002-01-14)3 substitute; Committee on Citizens' Freedoms and Rights, Justice and Home Affairs (1999-07-22--2002-01-14)3 vice-chair; AFCO (1999-07-21--2002-01-14)3 member; G/EFA (1999-07-20--2004-07-19)3 unknown; Die Grünen - Die Grüne Alternative (1999-07-20--2004-07-19)3
lpv:translated text	"Mr President, Madam President-in-Office of the Council, solving the historic task of the Union will be no easy matter; describing it is a piece of cake. Our most pressing task is to found a European democracy. That is the nub of the discussion and the conflict between us. The biggest obstacle now on the path towards a European democracy – and it needs to be said – is the Council’s claim to power, the claim to power of the national governments, which are not content merely with governing and legislating for Europe, they also want to write its constitution. The Council failed in Nice in its bid to become Europe’s constitution-writer. It was the arrogance of power which gambled with the acceptance of European unification by our citizens. The most important unanswered question in this discussion about European democracy is the position of the Commission. Madam President-in-Office, you spoke about transparency, about being close to the citizens, about dialogue, the spearheading role of parliaments and broad public debate and you meant, you believed, that you were talking about democracy. You were not talking about democracy. Democracy in Europe demands that we talk about the fundamental principles and elements of democracy, about the separation of powers, about the fact that it is unacceptable for national administrations to legislate. Democracy demands that we talk about the principle of legislating in public, about the fact that it is unacceptable for the Council to pass laws behind closed doors and for citizens to be stripped of their right to know who decided what and why and of their right to hold the decision makers to account. Democracy demands that we talk about a catalogue of human rights, about legal validity and about citizens’ access to the Court of Justice, that we talk about a system of checks and balances and about the fact that writing a constitution never has been and never will be the prerogative of governments; it is the original, inalienable prerogative of parliaments. Unless the Council renounces its claim to power and puts these elements of democracy at the top of the agenda, we never shall solve this major historic task."@en1
lpv:unclassifiedMetadata	"(Applause)"1

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