Bonde in the debate with the Council and Commission Presidents
Speech held on april 23rd 2008
Mr. President
President Barroso was on a sales mission the other day in Ireland. He regretted that President Bush had met 16 different Council presidents during his 8 years and praised the Lisbon treaty for establishing a joint Union President.
In these days we follow the battles between candidates for each competing party from state to state on all European TV channels.
The American President is elected.
How will we have our President? He will not be elected. There is no election campaign to follow on TV. There are no candidates for primary selection. There are no persons we can vote for.
In Europe we leave it to 27 Prime Ministers to meet behind closed doors and select a politician from the past.
A politician like Blair who cannot be elected any longer in his own country.
Or the former Austrian Chancellor who was voted out of job in Austria and who may be a compromise candidate for Merkel, Brown and Sarkozy - the 3 European prime ministers who will elect the President for all.
They meet privately and behind closed doors and appoint the President we shall send to the US and Latin America.
Our non-elected President shall go to China and Russia and criticize their failing democracy. He – there are no plans for a she – can be accompanied by a Commission President who is not elected as well and a foreign minister – High Representative – also handpicked by a super qualified majority of 20 of 27 prime ministers in the Lisbon treaty Union.
Democracy was born in Europe 2.500 years ago in Greece. How can a Commission President praise a treaty where all executive functions are handpicked behind closed doors instead of being the results of voters’ choice?
Two many countries have too often sent those to Brussels they wanted to get rid of at home.
Instead of the lack of democracy in the Lisbon treaty we should opt for a Europe of democracies and a democratic Europe where the voters elect all persons who shall serve the European citizens in negotiations with other countries and continents.
Barroso said in Cork that the Lisbon treaty would bring the EU closer to its citizens.
No, it will not. It will erase parliamentary democracy in 49 new areas and give us legislation and representation mainly by people we cannot elect or select.
We, the elected can be heard in foreign policy. But no one needs to listen.
We, the elected can send proposals for amendments to the non-elected in the Commission.
We, the elected can vote for or against Barroso if he is re-appointed by 20 of the 27 prime ministers.
It is not the recipe for democracy we shall represent in the non-democratic world.
Thank You, Mr. President for having allowed expressing both critical and constructive views for 29 years in this assembly.
The less bad institution in the EU.
This may be my last debate with the Commission and Council. After 29 years in this Parliament I leave my place to my successor, Hanne Dahl.
I will not be a member during the coming asparagus session in May. By, by Asparagus, Alsace wine, Munster cheese and the monthly travel circus between Strasbourg and Brussels.
