Vol. 542 No. 2
134 Mr. J. Bruton asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs if he favours the use of a Constitutional convention with wider representation, as well as a conventional Intergovernmental Conference, to draft the next EU Treaty; and his views on the composition of such a convention and its relationship with the Intergovernmental Conference. [20962/01]
153 Dr. Upton asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs the proposed terms of reference for the convention on the future of Europe agreed by the Council of Ministers on 8 October 2001; the way in which Irish representation on the convention will be selected; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23724/01]
I propose to take Questions Nos. 134 and 153 together.
The Nice European Council in December 2000 decided that there should be a wider and deeper debate about the future of the European Union, to culminate in a further Intergovernmental Conference in 2004. It was envisaged that the European Council at its meeting in Laeken in December 2001 would agree on how the process should be carried forward.
Although no formal decisions have yet been taken, it appears, including on the basis of discussion in the General Affairs Council on 8 October, that there is consensus on the establishment of a convention which would begin its work during the first half of next year. While many important questions remain to be settled in detail, it appears probable that the convention would include representatives of member state governments, national parliaments, the European Parliament, the European Commission, and the candidate countries. I expect that the nomination of Irish representatives would, as was the case with the convention which prepared the Charter of Fundamental Rights last year, be for the Government and the Oireachtas respectively.
The Government can support the establishment of a convention, and we believe that it can play an important role in developing debate and in clarifying the issues which arise out of the four specific questions identified at Nice last year. It is important to be clear that any further eventual treaty changes would be for the member states alone to agree, in the planned intergovernmental conference. For this reason, we and other member states are strongly of the view that the convention's remit should be focused on the preparation of options for further consideration.
Question No. 135 answered with Question No. 118.
