EU Parliament: blocks US illegal powers to monitor EU bank transactions which infringe on European privacy laws

The European Parliament has blocked the continuation of a nine-year, once-secret (illegal) agreement that allows US authorities to monitor the financial transactions of EU citizens. The Parliament voted yesterday by an overwhelming majority to reject the deal, with 378 MEPs voting against the deal and only 196 voting in favour.

During its debate, MEPs expressed anger that the Parliament was only presented with the deal after the fact and was not consulted during the making of it.

"Parliament's right to consent should not be used as a retrospective tool", said UK MEP Timothy Kirkhope. "We are finally getting assurances from Council and Commission [on data protection issues] but we now need some time before proceeding further in our considerations." The MEPs urged the EU and US to come to a deal that offered better privacy protection and constituted a better deal for the EU. MEPs reiterated that any new agreement must comply with Lisbon Treaty requirements, and in particular the Charter of Fundamental Rights."

"Council has not been tough enough on data protection" said Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert, who was the Parliament's rapporteur on the issue. She said that "the rules on data transfer and storage provided for in the interim agreement were not proportionate to the security supposedly provided," according to the statement.

German MEP Martin Schulz said in the Parliamentary debate that the deal was "a mistake and EU governments … thought they could get away with such a poor agreement, which is not in line with fundamental rights", he said. "How will data be retained, how will it be stored, can I have access to it, when it is going to be deleted? … This is a bad agreement that we simply cannot sign up to."

The European Commission, which brokered the rejected deal with the US, has told the Parliament that it will adopt a new set of draft guidelines in the coming weeks. Those guidelines "will address the European Parliament and Council's concerns [and ensure] the utmost respect for privacy and data protection," said the Parliament statement.

Note EU-Digest: This is good news for democracy in Europe and an indication that the EU Parliament is not a rubber stamp Parliament anymore. They are doing what they are supposed to do - protecting the citizens of the EU. It is also important for the US to realize they should do a better job at coordinating their own security resorces (as was proven during the recent airline terrorism event in Detroit involving a Delta aircraft coming from Amsterdam) before they infringe on other countries privacy rights.

For more: European Parliament blocks US powers to monitor EU bank transactions | Pinsent Masons LLP

EU: "Rompuying along" - ANGLO-SAXON EURO SCEPTICS THE MAIN SOURCE OF THE PROBLEM

"Three headaches obsess Brussels at this moment ( say Eurosceptics) . First comes the spectre of a euro-area crisis. Senior figures say it is a question of “when not if” external aid is sent to prevent cash-strapped Greece from defaulting on its debts. Second : Under the Lisbon treaty summits are meant to take place in Brussels, hosted by the new permanent president of the European Council, Herman Van Rompuy. But Spain, which holds the rotating EU presidency until June 30th, insisted on inviting Mr Obama to Madrid. He has now made clear he is not coming. A third headache is the “EU 2020 reform agenda”, a ten-year plan to make Europe dynamic by administrative fiat. The 2020 agenda is to be discussed at an informal summit called by Mr Van Rompuy on February 11th. EU leaders hope to build on the rubble of the 2000 Lisbon agenda, whose stated aim was to make the EU “the most dynamic and competitive knowledge-based economy in the world by 2010 capable of sustainable economic growth with more and better jobs and greater social cohesion and respect for the environment.” It failed.

Lisbon failed because lots of Europeans do not want to live in the most dynamic and competitive economy in the world. They prefer to work fewer hours than Americans or Japanese (about 10% fewer, on average), to take long holidays, and to retire as soon as possible. Among EU leaders it is fashionable to predict that the financial crisis will lead to a revolution in “European economic governance”. Yet that phrase hides a dearth of new ideas", they say.

Note EU-Digest: The Anglo-Saxons Euro-sceptics and their friends in the press just love to bad-mouth the EU, don't they? The most obvious reason Mr. Obama snubbed the EU Summit has probably all to do with Afghanistan, where the Europeans have been reluctant to support the US with additional troops and to help keeping a corrupt local government propped up. If there is a problem today in the EU, the Anglo-Saxon Euro-Sceptics are probably the main cause of it.

For the complete report also see: Charlemagne: Rompuying along | The Economist

Interpretation of the Lisbon Treaty: confusion reigns - clarity essential

Contrary to earlier expectations there now seems to be political confusion in Europe following the acceptance of the Lisbon Treaty. Europe seems to be having difficulty to get the treaty off to a quick start.

Unfortunately, at least from a protocol point of view, there seems to be initial confusion as to the interpretation of the Lisbon Treaty. Case in point, the upcoming US-EU summit. Even though Spain is hosting the EU-U.S. summit, it will be chaired by the new EU president, Herman Van Rompuy. But when asked earlier if President Obama was attending the summit, Van Rompuy’s office had no clue if he was attending, saying only that it had read press reports that he wasn’t coming. Officials referred calls to the Spanish rotating presidency in Brussels, which is in charge of planning summits and other meetings for the next six months. The perception now exists that no one seems to be sure who is calling the shots in Europe. Is it the EU rotating Presidency's office, the EU President Van Rompuy, Manuel Barroso, President of the European Commission, or Mrs. Catherin Ashton, the office of high representative for foreign affairs?

Foreign heads of state and their cabinets are expected to have made themselves familiar with the new EU structure under the Lisbon Treaty, but given the confusion which reigns, they don't seem to have done so. Therefore, even though everything is spelled out in the Lisbon Treaty, it would benefit the EU to produce a clear public outline on how the top EU hierarchy functions, based on the level of authority and responsibilities under the Lisbon Treaty. It is maybe good to remember the wise saying, "that if hierarchy is inaccessible on the human level, then chaos will prevail rather than natural order."

EU-Digest: Interpretation of the Lisbon Treaty: confusion reigns - clarity essential

AP: With glitz, EU marks start of Lisbon Treaty rules - by Barry Hatton

For the complete report from the Associated Press click on this link

Top European Union officials attended a ceremony Tuesday to mark the coming into force of the Lisbon Treaty, which is designed to ensure the bloc has a more influential say in world affairs. The treaty took effect after years of wrangling within the 27-nation union over its provisions. The glitzy ceremony took place at a specially built temporary venue next to the River Tagus, near where the treaty was signed two years ago. A logo of the treaty was projected onto a nearby 16th-century monument, and a fireworks display ended the hour-long ceremony for several hundred invited guests, including the prime ministers of Sweden and Spain.

The treaty features new rules to accelerate decision-making so that the EU can respond more swiftly to global issues such as defense, energy security, climate change and migration.

BBC - Will the EU flunk its big moment? - by Gavin Hewitt

For the complete report from the BBC click on this link

The dinner hour approaches when the EU must decide who will be its face on the world stage. It's a big credibility moment but with the clock ticking away there is, at the moment, only confusion, rumor and disagreement. In the meantime the British are still fighting for Tony Blair. Gordon Brown is likely to argue that the most important part of the Lisbon Treaty was the plan to give Europe a much stronger position on the world stage. Europe, in his view, needs a politician with an international name and, without doubt, Tony Blair is the best known. Poland seeks EU jobs transparency. Poland says rivals for the new top jobs of EU president and foreign affairs chief should "present their visions" to EU leaders.

FT.com: Decision time nears for EU presidency - by Tony Barber

For the complete report from the FT.com click on this link

The European Union's first full-time president will be chosen on November 19 and is almost certain to be a sitting or former head of government, Fredrik Reinfeldt, Sweden's prime minister, said yesterday. In an interview with the Financial Times, Mr Reinfeldt, who is leading the appointment process, said he had picked next Thursday as the date when the EU's 27 heads of state and government should finalise their choice at a dinner in Brussels. The presidency is one of two big jobs that the EU is creating to project its influence around the world and improve its policy making procedures. The other is a foreign policy supremo with enhanced powers.

Mr Reinfeldt said he had held discussions with 25 of the EU's other 26 leaders yesterday and on Monday, and planned to speak with the 27th today. "I'm very close to the end of my first consultations. After that, I'll do a second round, probably starting on Thursday this week, where I'll start working on compromises," he added.

Guardian.uk: David Cameron ditches referendum and backs away from EU 'bust-up' - by Nicolas Watt

For the complete report from The Guardian click on this link

David Cameron today backed away from a full-scale confrontation with the EU when he outlined a six-point package of reforms but adopted a conciliatory tone by saying he wanted to avoid a "bust-up" with Britain's European partners. In his most significant statement on the EU since becoming Conservative leader, triggered this week by the final ratification of the Lisbon treaty, Cameron finally abandoned his pledge to hold a referendum on the measure in Britain. Flanked by the most senior members of the shadow cabinet, Cameron said he would instead demand six changes to ensure that powers are "never again" ceded by Britain to the EU without the agreement of the British people.

Note EU-Digest: Mr.Cameron had come under considerable attack for his earlier negative statements on the EU not only from members of his own party,but also from EU officials and even members of the US political establishment when he recently visited the US.

Bloomberg: Belgium’s Van Rompuy Emerges as Compromise in EU Race

For the complete report from Bloomberg.com click on this link

The European Union’s first presidential campaign heated up, with Belgian Prime Minister Herman Van Rompuy emerging as a possible compromise candidate after former U.K. leader Tony Blair’s chances faded. Momentum built for a decision as soon as next week after the last hurdle to the creation of the post fell yesterday with Czech President Vaclav Klaus’s endorsement of the 27-nation bloc’s governing treaty. Van Rompuy, 62, joined Dutch Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende, 53, and Luxembourg Prime Minister Jean-Claude Juncker, 54, as potential choices for EU leaders as they prepare to pick their first president. Debate has centered on the choice between a globally recognized name or a practitioner of behind- the-scenes coalition-building. A trained economist, Van Rompuy worked at the Belgian central bank from 1972 to 1975 before going into politics, where he had stints in government in the 1980s and 1990s. As budget minister, he helped drive down Belgium’s debt from a peak of 135 percent of gross domestic product in 1993. It fell to below 100 percent of GDP in 2003.

Paddy Power Plc, Ireland’s biggest bookmaker, made Balkenende the 9-4 favorite, ahead of Blair at 11-4, Van Rompuy at 3-1 and Juncker at 4-1.

Gov. Monitor: Lisbon Treaty Offers Europe Hard Lessons And New Opportunities - : by Chris Ostrowski

For the complete report from The Gov Monitor click on this link

Lisbon Treaty Offers Europe Hard Lessons And New Opportunities - : by Chris Ostrowski

The two biggest lessons to be taken from this is not to produce a constitution which is so far reaching, inward looking and esoteric that the people give it a big raspberry (as happened in the European constitution); and not to promise a referendum on an issue that need to be discussed as part of the mainstream of political debate. How right was Chris Patten when he heard of the Prime Minister’s promise to hold a referendum: “They [referendums] undermine Westminster……if you have a referendum on an issue politicians, during an election campaign say oh we’re not going to talk about that, we don’t need to talk about that, that’s all for the referendum. So during the last election campaign [2001], the Euro was hardly debated. I think referendums are fundamentally anti-democratic…”

The challenge has always been how to illustrate that EU is responsible for some popular successes and more crucially how to show voters that if we had a Eurosceptic government then the consequences would be damaging to the British interest. Two factors could help the government here. Firstly, and the difficulties involved in this can not be underestimated, it would be of great benefit if Government Ministers were to take the time and initiative to praise the EU and other member states individually when there is a success. It has always been the way that ministers blame ‘Brussels’ when something goes wrong and take the praise for the government when something is a success. But because we are faced with a Eurosceptic party which might form a government for the first time the risk of ‘losing’ a success to Brussels is actually diminished if the case is properly made.

Czech president Vaclav Klaus now backs EU Lisbon Treaty

EU-Digest

Czech president Vaclav Klaus backs EU Lisbon Treaty

Czech President Vaclav Klaus is satisfied with a declaration by European Union leaders intended to pave the way to ratification of the bloc's Lisbon treaty, Czech Prime Minister Jan Fischer said on Thursday. Efforts to get the new treaty past the final roadblock coincided with stepped-up lobbying for the post of president, with several new candidates coming forward to challenge former U.K. Prime Minister Tony Blair. Leading politicians of the European left appeared to have dealt a fatal blow to Tony Blair’s chances of becoming the first permanent president of the European Union, after Spanish Premier José Luis Rodriguez Zapatero said the Socialist bloc wants the new position of EU Foreign Minister. The next step on the eight-year path toward the overhaul of the EU’s decision-making machinery is a ruling due next week by the Czech supreme court, which has already backed the treaty once.

The Prague Post - Czech Republic - Klaus, under pressure, likely to sign Lisbon Treaty

For the complete report from The Prague Post click on this link

Czech Republic - Klaus, under pressure, likely to sign Lisbon Treaty

While the public debate about the Lisbon Treaty saw protesters and counter protesters gather outside Prague Castle Oct. 19, the government of Prime Minister Jan Fischer and President Václav Klaus were crafting language designed to abate Klaus' concerns over a human rights protocol in the treaty, likely leading to Lisbon's ratification by the year's end. "The solution is now on the table," said Petr Drulák, director of the Prague Institute for International Relations. For his part, Klaus has stepped back from earlier demands that a concrete exemption from the Lisbon's Charter on Fundamental Rights - meant to prevent the Czech Republic having to pay restitution to ethnic Germans expelled after World War II - be added directly to the treaty. Instead, an addendum will be added to Croatia's accession treaty clarifying the application of the charter to guarantee that Sudeten Germans expelled by the Beneš Decrees would not be able to seek compensation in EU courts. This is similar to the way the EU made compromises with Ireland before its public referendum Oct. 2 and prevents Lisbon from having to be re-approved by all EU member states.

Unofficial race is on for EU’s top posts

Gulf Times – Qatar’s top-selling English daily newspaper - Europe/World

"Unofficial race is on for EU’s top posts

AFP/Brussels, Belgium


Ireland’s Yes vote for the EU reform treaty has intensified the unofficial race for the European Union’s new top jobs, including a figurehead president.

The Czech Republic and Poland still have to ratify the Lisbon Treaty before European leaders can name anyone president of the EU council and a new foreign affairs supremo.

Top EU figures would like the posts decided at the next EU summit this month and lobbying is already underway. Former British prime minister Tony Blair is the early favourite to become the first EU president.

The centre-left politician has support from London and Paris. He suffers from his close ties to former US president George W Bush in launching the Iraq war in 2003."

The Independent: Ireland's Yes camp buoyant ahead of Europe vote ( A No vote would return for Ireland to economic Isolation) - by David McKittrick

For the complete report from The Independent click on this link

Ireland's Yes camp buoyant ahead of Europe vote ( A No vote would return for Ireland to economic Isolation) - by David McKittrick

Irish referendum campaigns are traditionally unpredictable but it would take a significant late swing for the treaty to be rejected. With all the main political parties campaigning in favour of the treaty, one of the government's principal themes has been that another No vote would dramatically reduce Ireland's influence in Europe. "It would be seen as a retreat into economic isolationism and a spiritual withdrawal from Europe," the Finance Minister, Brian Lenihan, said. The European Central Bank had provided a lifeline, he said, without which the country's financial system would have collapsed.

Reuters: Irish support for Lisbon Treaty up

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Irish support for Lisbon Treaty up

Irish support for the European Union's Lisbon reform treaty rose two points to 48 percent on Friday but the latest opinion poll also showed the opposition gaining some ground, as the number of "don't knows" shrank. The "no" camp was up four points to 33 percent, a week before votes are cast. The Irish Times/TNS mrbi poll saw the undecided category drop by six points to 19 per cent. At a similar stage before last year's referendum 35 percent of voters polled remained undecided, the same number as the eventually victorious "no" camp and five more than the "yes" side.Ireland will vote again on the charter in another referendum on October 2.

EUobserver: Germany nears final ratification of Lisbon Treaty - by Honor Mahony

Berlin Parliament - photo Adaja Morren

For the complete report from the EUobserver click on this link

Germany nears final ratification of Lisbon Treaty - by Honor Mahony

Germany's president Horst Koehler on Wednesday (23 September) signed newly-drafted national laws enabling the country to adopt the EU's Lisbon Treaty, making final ratification of the document at the end of the week a formality. The laws will be published in Germany's official law register on Thursday and Mr Koehler is expected to sign the ratification document on Friday.Chancellor Angela Merkel welcomed the step as a great success, reports Spiegel Online. "I put a great deal of effort into this Lisbon Treaty and it is a good end to the German presidency of the EU that we held some time ago'" she said referring to the efforts Berlin made to revive the institutional negotiations in the EU after a planned EU constitution was rejected by France and the Netherlands in 2005.

AFP: Tories warn they could still torpedo EU treaty

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Tories warn they could still torpedo EU treaty

The Conservative Party warned Wednesday they would hold a referendum on the EU's Lisbon Treaty if they take office next year and the eurosceptic Czech president has not yet ratified it. Conservative leader David Cameron, widely tipped to oust Prime Minister Gordon Brown in ballots due by next July, has written to Vaclav Klaus to clarify his position, which in theory could torpedo the troubled treaty. The fate of the European Union treaty, aimed at streamlining decision-making in the expanded 27-nation bloc, is in the balance ahead of an Irish referendum on October 2, which EU leaders hope will overturn a 'no' vote last year.<

Note EU-Digest: Minority viewpoints on the Lisbon Treaty Agreement like those of the British Conservative party or Mr. Vaclav Klaus must obviously be listened to, but they can not be allowed to derail the majority viewpoint of the EU partner nations.

EUobserver :Barroso fears lame-duck commission - by Honor Mahony

Forthe complete report from the EUobserver click on this link

Barroso fears lame-duck commission - by Honor Mahony

European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso wants Europe to be a leading world power but believes its institutional problems may prevent it from negotiating on the key issue that could help achieve this goal. On the brink of possible re-appointment for a second term as head of the EU executive, Mr Barroso says he fears that ongoing uncertainty over the Lisbon Treaty, the EU's new set of internal rules, could mean he is saddled with a lame-duck institution at an international summit on climate change in December in Copenhagen."I fear the commission will not be there with its full competence politically and even legally," he told EUobserver and other media on Friday (4 September). The uncertainty stems from the fact that even if he gets parliament's approval next week for a further five years in office, there is no guarantee that the Lisbon Treaty will have been approved by all four of the remaining member states by the end of October, when the current commission's term expires.

News.scotsman.com: German court ruling calls into question the entire European project post Lisbon- by Struan Stevenson

For the complete report from the Scotsman.com click on this link

German court ruling calls into question the entire European project post Lisbon- by Struan Stevenson

A landmark legal ruling in Germany has sent the EU integration project into complete disarray. The German Constitutional Court examined the Lisbon Treaty – the successor to the infamous EU Constitution – and ruled the sovereignty of a member state (in this case Germany), must always take precedence over diktats from Brussels. The Constitutional Court in Karlsruhe effectively declared itself the highest supervisory body in conflicts between Germany and the EU, thus explicitly placing itself above the authority of the European Court of Justice. As Der Spiegel reported: "Thi s borders on a declaration of war on the European Court, which sees itself as the only authority capable of ruling on the validity and applicability of EU law." The German judges went further by ruling the German Parliament had been wrong in passing an "accompanying law" to the Lisbon Treaty, which determined the rights of the German parliament to participate in European legislation.

Nasdaq: Ireland's Green Party To Campaign In Favor Of EU Reform Treaty

For the complete report from the Nasdaq click on this link

The prospect of the E.U. reform treaty passing its main hurdle to ratification, an October referendum in Ireland, received a boost Saturday when Ireland's Green Party decided to push for a 'yes' vote. The Greens, a junior party in Ireland's ruling coalition, voted by a two-to- one majority to campaign for the Lisbon Treaty, which Irish voters rejected in a first referendum in June 2008, sending shock waves through the bloc. At Saturday's special convention Green Party members voted by 214 (66%) to 107 (33%) in favor of the treaty.

The most recent opinion polls show 54% of Irish voters would now say 'yes' to the Lisbon Treaty. Almost all the other 27 E.U. member states have endorsed the treaty, which is designed to streamline the E.U.'s decision-making, through votes in their national parliaments.Only Ireland is constitutionally bound to put the treaty to a vote. The Czech Republic, Germany and Poland are also still to ratify the Lisbon Treaty but do not have to put the matter to a public election.

European Voice.com: EU casts Irish guarantees on Lisbon 'in iron' - by Judith Crosbie

For the complete report from European Voice click on this link

EU casts Irish guarantees on Lisbon 'in iron' - by Judith Crosbie

EU leaders satisfy Irish government's concerns with an agreement that would not alter “a dot or a comma” of the EU's reform treaty. Ireland will hold a referendum in early October on the Lisbon treaty after winning “cast-iron legal guarantees” on issues of concern to the Irish electorate, Brian Cowen, the prime minister said today. The deal was brokered following negotiations with the UK, which accepted that Ireland needed a legally binding protocol on tax, ethical issues and neutrality. As requested by Ireland, all 27 member states will ratify the protocol when they approve the next accession treaty, most likely Croatia's.