Like being able to drink a beer in a cinema in Holland ...Speaking of the Dutch they , of course rejected the Constitution said to be identical to the Treaty soi disant on which we do not get a vote . How little are the differences here?Hans -Gert Poettering MEP President of the EU has said that statistics about the extent to which the treaty was a cut and paste job are highly misleading.(96% say Open Europe .)Compared to the draft Constitution , he says , the treaty contains opts outs on the Charter of fundamental rights as well as a wider exemption in Justice and Home Affairs which mean that although the text is almost identical most of it will not apply to us . Not so very difficult to understand if its true . In fact the anecdotal evidence that the treaty and the Constitution are the same is largely drawn from the reaction of other foreign leaders announcing it as celebration but they are , supposedly in a fundamentally different position to us so the President’s remarks are well aimed .We have as many genes in common with a frog but the effect is contrasting . .
So how strong are the opt outs . How red are the red lines ? We cannot trust Hans Gert Pottering and I suspect Conservatives are right to scent blood. As yet , however, the case is not proved.
4 comments:
I am no expert, but I would think that an ECJ decision a few years down the line will be enough to delete these "opt-outs". The fact is we are not suited to this kind of Napoleonic legal setup with "rights" instead of "freedoms" etc.
I just don't understand why our politicos sign us up to this guff - there must be a better way.
By the way you can drink beer in some cinemas in England now - for me that is the kind of European Integration that is worthwhile!
Really , it was the line in Pulp fiction I was thinking of Ed and I am certain you are right in what you say otherwise
it was the line in Pulp fiction I was thinking of
Thought so. Still can't get a beer in McDonald's in England.
Le Big Mac
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