Barroso you will have seen comments in the press
about his speech of Weds morning. They
are not exaggerated, he is on a mission, they all are. Nothing will stop
them making this a Single
European State
From my notes of
Barroso's 42 minute speech of Weds morning.
*(justifying the
last 50 years) "It took the UK
*The Commission
takes the lead in sustainability/equality/ fairness/ growth
*Greece
* the ECB will not
finance Governments
* the Commission
rules, with European Parliament oversight
* the FTT will
cover banks and financial institutions need to be brought together
* there must be a
Banking Union.
*There will
be Federation of nation States, guide
for years to come, NOT a superstate!
* Sovereignty must
be shared
*It must be a Union WITH the member states, not OF the member States.
*It needs a new
treaty!
* needs a new EMU
* All nationalists
and populists are bad!
*Especially, the
Commission has today adopted EPP, European Political Parties, (which our party
voted against last conference against the advice of those who actually take
part in this European Parliament. It looks like we were right, if it means we
will not be able to take part in the next European Parliament Elections unless
we are in an EPP. Rather than join one we should start one, to preserve our
main claim to electoral success)
This was followed
by a round from all group leaders. Unusually, after Barosso Had summed up there
was another round from group leaders and another Barosso summing up, 3 hours
altogether. We wonder if this was a one off, or the shape of things to come.
For the S & D
Swaboda remarked that the EU was to be an emerging state, not a submerging one!
Verhofstadt,
(leader of the Lib-Dems and former Belgian Premier) said it is not yet a
federation and it must be a political entity, not an economic one.
**At this point
the President interrupted proceedings to inform us of the decision of the German Constitutional Court UK
Voting.
Thursday, the vote, "Proposal for a European Banking Union"
passed with a large majority. Once implemented it will be the end of the Bank
of England.
Wednesday. Votes
on 4 Fishing reports to which I spoke on Tuesday evening, text and video on
website, my speech being a catch-all because the 4 reports were lumped together
as a Joint Debate (not uncommon). Of interest was that I was "blue
carded" ie a blue card was waved to ask me a question. This was from Chris
Davies (.Lib-Dem, North West UK
Lastly a bit of
humour. Today Lamberts, rapporteur of the "European Venture Capital
Funds" report asked for a postponement of the final vote, adoption, of his
report. That was, he said, because he had failed to get agreement with the
Council on his report. He was going to ask, he said, if Council would agree
today, in the chamber, but there was no one of the Council there! I counted up.
There were just 12 Council Assistants present, no one in the front 3 rows where
the actual Council members sit. So after Barosso's strident comments about a
Federal Europe not one minister of any EU country could be bothered to attend
Parliament, which is supposed to work in harmony with the Council.
Ís that a sign of
Federal things to come?
Just to round of,
a cutting from the press summary we get every day.-
Immigration - Law
change could mean exodus of Russians to UK
(Derby
Evening Telegraph, p.14): "THE news that we could see a large exodus
of Russian citizens coming into the UK Latvia would see the right to citizenship handed
to the children and grandchildren of all Latvians sent by Stalin and his Soviet
successors into exile in Siberia . Many could
end up in this country, as Latvians are entitled to live and work in the UK East
Midlands )
Derek Clark MEP Strasbourg
