Governance

The Convention on the Future of Europe

At the Nice European Council in 2000, European leaders decided that there should be a deeper and wider debate on the future of the European Union (EU).

They then met in Laeken in December 2001 where they issued a Declaration in which they agreed upon the creation of a Convention to bring together the key parties in the debate to consider the main issues concerning the Union’s future development and to identify possible responses.

The Laeken Declaration charged the Convention with drawing up a document that would act as the starting point for discussions in an Inter-Governmental Conference (IGC) starting in autumn 2003, where leaders of the EU Member States would take the ultimate decisions.

The main issues the Convention has been discussing are:

• Clarification of the division of responsibilities between the EU and its Member States
• Simplification of the Union’s complicated Treaties
• How to achieve more democracy, transparency and efficiency
• The status of the Charter of Fundamental Rights
• A European Constitution
• The role of national parliaments

The Convention is composed of 105 members drawn from national governments, national parliaments, representatives from the candidate countries, members of the European Parliament and 2 representatives from the European Commission. Andrew Duff, MEP for the East of England, sits on the Convention as a representative from the European Parliament. The Convention is chaired by Valéry Giscard d'Estaing, a former French President.

Links for further information

• European Convention Website
• The Future of Europe debate website
• Declaration on the future of Europe, annexed to Nice Treaty 2000
• The Laeken Declaration, December 2001

Agreement on Constitutional Treaty

In 2004, the 25 EU leaders reached agreement on the new Constitutional Treaty, which was signed at an official ceremony in Rome in October  2004. Following its signing, EU Member States had 2 years to ratify the Treaty, and many of them (including the UK) planned on holding a referendum. However, following the rejection of the Treaty by the French and Dutch voters, the ratification process came to an end and in the UK the referendum was postponed indefinitely.

The Brussels Office prepared a preliminary report on some of the key elements in the constitutional Treaty. If you would like a copy please click here.

The Lisbon Treaty

The Lisbon Treaty (also known as the Reform Treaty or “Simplified Treaty”) is a replacement for the Constitutional Treaty. The Lisbon Treaty contains many of the changes that the Constitutional Treaty did, but amends earlier EU treaties without replacing them.

The Lisbon Treaty was signed on 13 December 2007, and entered into force on 1 December 2009. The key aspects of the Lisbon Treaty relate to the EU’s ability to meet the challenges of the 21st century.

The Treaty aims to contribute to:

• A more democratic and transparent Europe by strengthening the role of both the European Parliament and national parliaments.
• A more efficient Europe, with simplified and streamlined modern institutions.
• A Europe of rights and values, freedom, solidarity and security.
• Europe as an actor on the world stage.

For more information on the Treaty of Lisbon, as well as a full copy of the text, please click here.

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