I thank the Chairman and members of the sub-committee for inviting us to Dublin for this meeting. Many of us come from warmer parts of Europe and it is pretty cold in Dublin. As Oscar Wilde said, "Wisdom comes with winters." We very much hope to get a clearer idea of the committee's view on the future of Europe and Ireland in the European Union. The committee might hear from us about how we see different things that are on the table. There was a huge interest in the Committee on Constitutional Affairs to meet the sub-committee. We have a high profile delegation, which I will introduce.
I present the following: Mr. Richard Corbett, MEP, the spokesperson of the Party of European Socialists from Great Britain; Ms Monica Frassoni, MEP, the Co-President of the Green Party in the European Parliament; Mr. Elmar Brok, MEP, a representative of the Parliament in various intergovernmental conferences from the Treaty of Amsterdam via the Nice treaty to the Lisbon treaty; Mr. Enrique Barón Crespo, MEP, the former President of the European Parliament from Spain; and our dear colleagues from Ireland, Mr. Brian Crowley, MEP, representing the Europe of the Nations group; Mr. Colm Burke, MEP, from the European People's Party; Mr. Proinsias De Rossa, MEP, from the Party of European Socialists; and not to forget Mr. György Schöpflin, MEP, from Hungary, a very important voice from one of the 12 new member states.
The constitutional affairs committee has worked. It is about a new treaty for the larger EU of 27 member states, with probably more to come. On the morning of the summit in Nice, everybody agreed that the Treaty of Nice was not enough for good governance, transparency, democracy and efficiency in the EU of the future. Since 2001 the world has changed dramatically. More than ever there is a need for better functioning of the EU. Our citizens expect that the EU can do the job and meet the main challenges to be faced in the years ahead. We have more challenges than we want, starting with 9/11 and the terrorist threats to our countries. There is migration from Africa, Asia and eastern Europe, and we must have a common system in place to deal with legal and even illegal migration. There is the enormous issue of our dependency on energy imports. We in Europe are very vulnerable and know we can only deal with this by speaking with one voice to Russia and other areas of the world that supply us with gas and oil.
The climate change package is on the table. We know for certain that no country can deal with this problem on its own. Then there is peace building and peacekeeping, where the United Nations is asking European countries and especially the European Union to play an increasing role, not only in our immediate neighbourhood, the Balkans, where we are already active, but in Chad. Individual European countries, along with the African Union, are helping Chad significantly to rebuild its capacity. In addition, the UN is asking the EU to help immediately with a peacekeeping force in Chad. We have lost a good deal of time dealing with our internal problems in the EU. Now, more than ever, we need a better basis for stronger policies and institutions in the EU to find solutions to our challenges.
The European Parliament has expressed itself on various occasions on the reform treaty. I want to refer to article 1 of the resolution tabled by Richard Corbett, MEP, and Íñigo Méndez de Vigo, MEP, on 20 February 2008 that received overwhelming majority support. Some 540 MEPs voted in favour of the proposal, only the anti-Europeans voted against, as they always do when it is a question on the future of Europe. The article said the Parliament had concluded that the Treaty of Lisbon was a substantial improvement on the existing treaties, which would bring more democratic accountability to the Union and enhance its decision making, strengthening the roles of the European Parliament and the national parliaments.
Mr. Elmar Brok, MEP, is our rapporteur on the role of the national parliaments under the new treaty and might speak on this point later. We continue to enhance the rights of the European citizens with the Charter of Fundamental rights — the most modern catalogue of rights and freedoms enjoyed by people around the world — and improve the effective functioning of the Union's institutions. We have, therefore, been very positive as regards the package deal for the reform treaty.
I use the term "package deal" because when one has 27 member states, making compromises becomes necessary. Everybody has wishes he or she wants fulfilled and even the European Parliament wanted other issues included and certain points improved in the reform treaty. However, the treaty is what is possible at this time and it is the deal done between 27 member states.
Most recently, on 22 October 2008, more than 500 MEPs meeting in plenary session voted for a resolution on the October summit. On the Lisbon treaty the resolution states that Parliament "reiterates its respect for the result of the Irish referendum and for the results of the ratification procedures of the other Member States, and considers that it is possible to meet the concerns that have been expressed by the Irish people in order to secure a solution acceptable to all before the European elections". An important point, which members may wish to discuss, was the statement that Parliament "stands ready to offer the Irish government and parliament any assistance they may require in order to present a set of proposals which will forge a broader, more informed consensus in Irish public opinion about Ireland's future within a reformed and strengthened European Union and which will be acceptable to Ireland's EU partners". We are here to listen to members, answer any questions they may have and help to get a broader and deeper debate about the main messages and objectives of the reform treaty and our common future in the European Union.
In 2009, the European Union will experience important moments. We have elections to the new European Parliament, the citizens' chamber of 500 million people, as well as the election of the President of the European Commission and college of commissioners. We are often asked under what rules the elections to the Parliament will be held and the composition of the new Commission will be done. Will the provisions of the Nice treaty apply or will the rules of the Lisbon treaty, which are better for both procedures, apply?
We have been invited to attend a meeting of the joint committee on 29 October, which is a good moment. We know the committee will finish its very welcome work by the end of November. Let us, therefore, use the two hours available to us to exchange questions and have a productive meeting.