Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2008-06-18-Speech-3-014"
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"en.20080618.2.3-014"2
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"Madam President, Mr President of the Commission, Mr President-in-Office of the Council, ladies and gentlemen, the European Council would be well-advised to refrain from displaying any sort of arrogance towards the people of Ireland, who merely exercised a democratic right recognised by their Constitution. Rather than calling for the continuation of the ratification process in an attempt to isolate this new black sheep, it would be better to knuckle down to a clear analysis of the situation. The Irish ‘no’ vote was particularly strong among the working classes and I would remind you that turnout was much higher than in the past; according to my Group, this reveals that the crisis surrounding the legitimacy of the current European model is growing ever deeper. This crisis was already at the heart of the French and Dutch ‘no’ votes; it is expressed differently elsewhere but it is always an underlying element.
Remember the large-scale protests against the Bolkestein Directive; think of the debate that arose after the Laval and Viking affairs, particularly in Scandinavian countries, or in Germany after the Rüffert judgment. In this respect, I want to say to my friend Martin Schulz that I agree completely with what he said about Mr McCreevy. The problem is that those decisions – the ones I have just mentioned – were taken not by Mr McCreevy but by the Court of Justice on the basis of specific articles (Articles 43 and 49 of the current Treaties incorporated in the Lisbon Treaty). Think, too, of the political impact of the powerful strike in Dacia, Romania against ‘low-cost Europe’. Look at the anger of farmers or small-scale fishermen who are in dire straits. What lies at the root of all these situations is first and foremost the current European economic and social model: instead of providing security, it leads to greater insecurity. That is the number one problem.
Another factor is the way in which the Union functions. Decisions are taken far from the people and without the people. We are content with explaining them to them rather then consulting them. The deliberate decision to present the Lisbon Treaty in a form that is totally illegible to a lay person is, in this respect, a spectacular illustration of what I would call ‘the ivory tower syndrome’. This has devastating effects on our citizens, especially the less populated nations, which feel as though they are being bandied about to satisfy the interests of the more powerful nations.
Finally, there are more and more questions in many countries, including Ireland, about the role Europe plays in the world, where it is expected to ensure that there is a much stronger emphasis on the force of politics rather than the politics of force. Running away from these debates means exacerbating the crisis in Europe; conducting them in complete transparency would be a first step on the road to finding a solution."@en1
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