EU institutional reform and international development
EU institutional reform and international development – how do we achieve the best outcome?
BOND event, 7 July 2008
BOND held an event on future EU institutional reforms on 7 July in the London office of the European Commission. The event was an opportunity for civil society representatives, academics and representatives from government and institutions to have an open debate on the new context for EU institutional reforms, possible options following the Irish no vote and implications of those options for development. Participants also talked about decision making processes, timing and influencing opportunities for civil society.
Speakers included Richard Howitt MEP, Mikaela Gavas from DFID, Joyce Haarbrink from Eurostep and Ian Barber from the European Commission.
Ireland voted against ratification of the Lisbon Treaty in the referendum held on 12 June, which means that the Lisbon Treaty will probably not come into force on 1 January 2009. EU Member States are rethinking the way to proceed with EU institutional reforms.
EU Heads of States met on 19-20 June and agreed to return to the issue at the next European Council meeting in October to consider the way forward. The European leaders also agreed that the process of ratification is continuing in the Member States that have not yet ratified the Treaty.
In the UK The British Parliament completed the ratification process of the Treaty with the last reading in the House of Lords on 18 June.
It is possible that in the meantime the EU will look at ways to implement some institutional reforms that do not necessarily require the Lisbon Treaty to come into force, among those areas might be the European External Action Service.
One of the implications of the recent NO vote in Ireland is that the number of Commissioners may now be reduced in 2009 instead of 2014, in accordance with the Nice Treaty which remains in place. This might have a very significant impact on development as there is a risk that the post of Commissioner for Development might be at risk.
From a development point of view it is vital that, whatever direction the EU decides to take on future institutional reforms, poverty eradication stays the primary objective of European Development Policy and coherence is ensured between the EU external affairs and development objectives as stated in the European Consensus on Development, to avoid subordinating development instruments to a narrowly defined foreign policy agenda or Europe's commercial objectives. This should be translated into practice by:
- Having a dedicated commissioner for development who is in a position to promote the interest of EU development policy within the College of Commissioners and towards the Council. The Commissioner should have a say not only on policy formulation and funding but also on implementation of development policies in order to end the inconsistencies caused by the gap between policy and implementation in the current structure.
- Having a dedicated administrative structure responsible for EU development policy and its implementation that has a clear focus on development objectives and sufficient capacity and is responsible for development policy and programming in all developing countries – African, Caribbean, Pacific, Asian and Latin American countries - to avoid current inconsistencies due to the split between DG Development and DG Relex
More info...
Read BOND's recommendations in the BOND position paper on the Lisbon Treaty and its implications for development (word, 100KB).
The Lisbon Treaty and its implications on international development were discussed in the House of Commons on 26 February as part of the UK Parliament debate on the Lisbon Treaty ratification.
Read the complete text of the EU Reform Treaty
Read Simon Stocker's article for BOND Networker on the Lisbon Treaty
To know more about current BOND's work in relation to EU Institutional Reform, contact Romina Vegro at BOND.