The new deal, a good deal?

Daniel Gros, Stefano Micossi, 25 June 2007

Much of the substance of the Constitutional Treaty has been preserved, but since this is clear only to the initiated, it comes at a cost of considerably reduced transparency. And this is not complete; expect more Treaty revisions before all of the provisions of this one have been implemented.

The heads of state and government laboured until the early hours of Saturday morning until they found an agreement on how to reform the EU. Was this a good deal, or a badly thought through compromise? Our judgment is positive.

Topics: EU institutions, Europe's nations and regions
Tags: EU Constitution, EU Treaty

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Weighting votes in the Council: towards a ‘Warsaw compromise’?

Daniel Gros, Mika Widgrén, Sebastian Kurpas, 20 June 2007

The Polish proposal on Council voting is not that far from the rules in the Constitution that the German Presidency is pushing. Does it still make sense to declare “square root or death”? How about “square root and compromise”?

One of the key obstacles to a swift agreement on how to reform EU institutions is the belated insistence of Poland to reopen the issue of voting weights in the Council.

Topics: EU institutions
Tags: EU Constitution, EU Council, Poland

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EU Constitution: an economist’s perspective, Part 4

Richard Baldwin, 13 June 2007

Council voting reform is one change that must be in the new treaty to consider it a success. The impact of Turkish membership on the distribution of power could be the key to choosing from the options for Council voting reform

The EU already has a constitution. Every organisation does. A group without a constitution is just a social gathering. The EU’s constitution is called “the Treaties” – basically the Treaty of Rome and the Maastricht Treaty as modified by subsequent treaties.

Topics: EU institutions
Tags: Constitutional Treaty, EU Charter, EU Constitution, EU Council

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EU Constitution and its replacement: an economist’s perspective, Part 1

Richard Baldwin, 9 June 2007

Public debate on the new treaty focuses on marketing issues (re-packing) or extreme generalities (mini-treaty), but there are important choices to be made, and the various reform elements – such as voting rules, the number of Commissioners and removal of the famous Maastricht pillars – interact in complex ways. First in a series of 4 columns on the issue.

The June 2007 Summit organised by the Germany Presidency of the EU will strive to revive the Constitutional Treaty, or parts of it. The goal is to set the agenda for a new Intergovernmental Conference that would draft a new treaty. Such agendas usually pre-determine much of the final outcome, so it is important to discuss now what any new treaty should look like.

Topics: EU institutions
Tags: Constitutional Treaty, Council voting, EU, EU Constitution, Europe, Institutional reform