Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2007-01-17-Speech-3-031"
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"en.20070117.3.3-031"2
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"Mr President, Madam President-in-Office of the Council, Mrs Merkel, I should like to extend the warmest of thanks to you for your marvellous words, which were full of feeling. I do not doubt that what you had to say about the values that bind us together – tolerance and freedom among them – mark an important step towards finding the soul of which you spoke.
You will of course be aware of what is expected of the German Presidency, and, in particular, of you as President-in-Office, for courage and the strength for leadership are completely absent from this EU of ours, and the expectation of you, Mrs Merkel, is no more and no less than that you will demonstrate that courage and that strength that fits you for leadership, so get down to brass tacks! That is what everyone in this House expects of you.
I am glad that you have declared yourself willing to work very hard and constructively with us. You can rely on us. I would like to see the presidency of what is both your country and mine become a success.
I am also glad of your forthright statement about the timetable for the constitutional treaty, and think you are right to say that it needs to be ratified by the spring of 2009. You want to get the other Heads of Government committed to this, but, of course, saying this naturally involves saying something else too, namely which constitutional treaty we are actually talking about here. The present one is a busted flush, having been rejected, and so I would like to ask you to say, in quite definite terms, what you think about this. Do you want a shorter version of the kind already proposed, or are you holding fast to the present constitutional treaty? How is it meant to be ratified? Is every country to adopt its own procedure and do it at its own speed? Are there to be national referendums, or is that something you want to steer clear of?
Mrs Merkel, you have said on repeated occasions that you want to put the citizen centre stage in European policy, and that is precisely what is needed. That is the response we need to increasing euro-scepticism or rejection of the EU – a citizens’ Europe, rather than a Europe of secret diplomacy. The constitutional treaty is more than just a document laying down processes and voting procedures; it can be the foundation of the shared values that bind us and which are summarised in it. It is for that reason that Europe’s citizens should be given the chance to themselves say what they think about it. What, Mrs Merkel, do you think of the idea of a Europe-wide referendum held on the same day throughout Europe? That would be an historic event. The people could say what they think.
What I need to say before I wind up is that more than a million people would like us to conduct this sort of debate in Brussels. That, too, would make me happy. It is up to you."@en1
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