Tackling of EU crisis needs Lisbon Treaty, says Barroso

EUROPEAN COMMISSION president José Manuel Barroso and France, which holds the EU presidency, have said Europe needs the Lisbon Treaty to tackle the current crisis facing the EU.

They have also urged states that have not ratified Lisbon, such as the Czech Republic, Poland and Sweden, to complete ratification as soon as possible to remove uncertainty.

"It is a time to recall that the last few weeks and months have shown again how Europe needs the Lisbon Treaty," Mr Barroso told MEPs yesterday in a debate about next week's EU summit, when Taoiseach Brian Cowen must update EU leaders on the Irish No vote.

"Can we deal with the crisis with Russia and Georgia with a president of the council that changes every six months? It is obvious we need a more effective Europe; a more democratic Europe; a Europe with a clear voice on the international stage," said Mr Barroso, who added now was not the time to prejudge the way forward.

French European affairs minister Jean-Pierre Jouyet said the issue of the Lisbon Treaty was at "the heart of French concerns" and something we all need to urgently resolve.

"The instability we are now facing is further justification to get the new institutional framework for Europe . . . we urgently need this," said Mr Jouyet, who is co-ordinating France's efforts to persuade Ireland to hold a second referendum on Lisbon next year.

Leader of the Socialist Group at the European Parliament Martin Schultz said the EU needed the new treaty to enable enlargement and deal with the current crisis.

He said if the Government could avoid ratifying Lisbon before next year's European elections, it would provide time to investigate claims the CIA were mixed up in the referendum campaign. This was a reference to concerns about the funding sources of Declan Ganley's Libertas.

© 2008 The Irish Times

This article appears in the print edition of the Irish Times