Thursday

28th Mar 2024

EP Committee wants Charter in new EU Constitution

The majority of MEPs in the Constitutional Affairs Committee approved on Thursday a draft report by liberal MEP Andrew Duff, which states that the Charter of Fundamental Rights should be incorporated in a new Constitutional Treaty without amending the provisions contained in the Charter. This report, which will be presented in the next plenary session in the European Parliament later this month, was approved by twenty one MEPs in favour and three against.

An integral part of new Constitutional Treaty

The Committee stressed that the Charter should be incorporated into the basic law of the EU as an integral part of a new constitutional treaty, and warned of the dangers of refusing to make the Charter mandatory upon all the EU institutions, EU member states, bodies and agencies .

Vitorino presents progress report to Convention

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Also on Thursday justice and home affairs Commissioner, Antonio Vitorino, during the plenary session of the Convention presented his working group’s progress on the Charter of Fundamental Rights. He said that in his group, there was either "support without reservation" or "readiness" to see the charter attached to the Treaty. Still open was whether to insert the charter in the treaty or refer to in an article and attach as a protocol. His group also felt that the EU should accede to the European Convention on Human Rights.

Brussels could take the UK to court over strikes

However, accession of the Charter of Fundamental Rights into the treaty was met with resistance by some delegates in the Convention. Peter Hain, the UK minister for Europe, articulated the British government’s worries on the matter. It is worried that inclusion of the charter into the treaty will mean that the right to strike will be guaranteed in the treaty. Technically it would mean that Brussels could take the UK to court over strikes, with a final decision being taken by the European Court of Justice.

At present the charter does not have any legal status. It isjust a text which outline rights which already exist in member states. It was drafted on 2 October 2000 after a proposal from the Cologne European Council on 3-4 June 1999. The Charter was finally signed and proclaimed by the Presidents of the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission on 7 December 2000 in Nice.

Ukraine slams grain trade restrictions at EU summit

Restrictions on Ukrainian agricultural exports to the EU could translate into military losses in their bid to stop Russia's war, Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky warned EU leaders during their summit in Brussels on Thursday.

Difficult talks ahead on financing new EU defence spending

With the war in Ukraine showing no signs of ending any time soon, EU leaders will meet in Brussels on Thursday and Friday (21 and 22 March) to discuss how to boost the defence capabilities of Ukraine and of the bloc itself.

Opinion

Why UK-EU defence and security deal may be difficult

Rather than assuming a pro-European Labour government in London will automatically open doors in Brussels, the Labour party needs to consider what it may be able to offer to incentivise EU leaders to factor the UK into their defence thinking.

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