Open Europe press summary: 14 May 2009

Barroso postpones controversial EU inheritance law until after second Irish Lisbon Treaty referendum;
Irish government breathes sigh of relief that Klaus will not chair EU summit
European Voice reports that Commission President José Manuel Barroso and Commission Secretary-General Catherine Day have requested that controversial plans for EU-wide recognition of inheritance claims be put on hold, for fear of negative reactions in Ireland ahead of the second referendum on the Lisbon Treaty. The European Commission had been due to table a proposal in March to have wills and inheritance claims recognised across member states. The article notes that the delay mirrors a decision by the Commission not to propose legislation on corporate tax ahead of the first Irish referendum in June last year.

Meanwhile, the Irish Times reports that the Czech government has decided that next month's EU leaders' summit in Brussels will be chaired by Prime Minister Jan Fischer rather than its President Vaclav Klaus, known for his strong opposition to the EU's Lisbon Treaty. The paper notes that concern over Mr Klaus' attendance at the summit is one of the reasons why the Irish government is trying to fast track agreement on its 'guarantees' on the Lisbon Treaty before the summit begins, therefore avoiding a debate among EU leaders at the high-profile summit.

Irish Prime Minister Brian Cowen is trying to get a political agreement among EU states on tax, neutrality, workers' rights and the retention of Ireland's EU Commissioner ahead of Ireland's second referendum on the Treaty. The article notes that the Czech government's decision is unlikely to change Cowen's strategy of fast-tracking talks on the 'guarantees'.
Irish Times EUobserver European Voice European Voice 2

EU countries bargain for Commission posts but Germany lacks a candidate
According to the FTD, suggestions by Die Welt that French Finance Minister Christine Lagarde may be nominated as EU Competition Commissioner have been rejected by Paris and Brussels. EUobserver reports that Lagarde has also denied that she is interested in becoming Competition Commissioner. The Le Monde blog reports that Michel Barnier is the favourite for Internal Market Commissioner.

The FTD reports that Spanish PM José Luis Zapatero negotiated with Barroso to support him for another term as Commission President, in exchange for an important economic portfolio for the Spanish Commissioner. Reportedly, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier are also insisting that Barroso give Germany a top Commission portfolio, preferably the Internal Market. However, Germany's nomination for Commissioner is currently unknown and might depend on the outcome of national elections in September.
FTD Welt EUobserver Le Monde

Labour to launch European election campaign today;
IHT: Few Europeans realise but the bulk of their legislation is made in the EU
Reuters reports that the Labour Party is due to launch its local and European election campaigns today in Derbyshire. The article reports that the launch is threatening to be overshadowed by ongoing stories of expenses abuses by MPs.

An article in the IHT looks at voter apathy in the upcoming European elections, and writes "Few Europeans realise it, but the bulk of their legislation on issues like the environment, consumer rights and transport is made in this way [on the EU level], rather than in national capitals."

The Independent looks at which fringe parties might profit from voters boycotting the main political parties, and suggests that UKIP could be the main beneficiary. It also suggests that Libertas will not receive much support in Britain, but "looks sure" to win seats across Europe.
Reuters IHT Independent FT: Rachman blog Le Monde

Eurojust head caught up in corruption probe
EUobserver reports that the head of the EU's judicial co-operation body Eurojust, Jose da Mota, has come under fire for allegedly putting pressure on prosecutors in Portugal in order to stop a corruption probe involving Portuguese Prime Minister Jose Socrates.

Open Europe's Stephen Booth is quoted saying, "These allegations are incredibly serious and, if proved, call into question the political independence and credibility of Eurojust".
EUobserver

Commission to table proposals on financial reform
European Voice reports that the European Commission is to present its proposals on reform of financial supervision in the EU on 27 May. The Commission will outline the arrangements for the two new regulatory bodies recommended by the de Larosière report and is likely to fix the end of next year as a deadline for completing preparatory work on the proposed European System Risk Council (ESRC) and the European System of Financial Supervision (ESFS), so they can both come into operation early in 2013.

The article reports that the UK opposes subordinating the ESRC to the European Central Bank, as well as giving the new authorities binding powers of mediation when national supervisors disagree. Robert Priester, Head of Banking Supervision at the European Banking Federation, is quoted describing the upcoming debate on financial supervision as "one of the most challenging moments in the EU integration process".
European Voice

Barber: "Turkey has options" when it comes to EU enlargement
In the FT, Tony Barber looks at opposition within the EU to Turkish accession and quotes French President Nicolas Sarkozy who said last week, "Europe must have frontiers. Europe must have limits." Barber writes, "the very act of drawing a line, and leaving a country forever on the wrong side of it, is sure to diminish the EU's power to encourage benign change in that country".

He goes on to write that Turkey is a considerable regional power and "In short, Turkey has options. The EU can draw all the lines on maps it wants, but it should remember that Turkey can decide its destiny for itself - possibly, in ways the EU would not like."
FT: Barber

Italian MPs back legislation criminalising illegal immigration
The Italian lower house yesterday approved legislation which criminalises illegal immigration, sets up civilian anti-crime patrols and sentences landlords to up to three years of prison if they rent to undocumented migrants. The law would make entering or staying in Italy without permission a crime punishable by a fine of €5,000 to €10,000. The bill now goes to the Italian Senate.
BBC EUobserver European Voice Le Figaro Le Monde El País

Commission hits Intel with €1.06bn record fine
The FT reports that Intel, the world's largest computer chipmaker, has been fined a record €1.06bn by the European Commission for abusing its dominant market position.
FT: Lex FT Irish Times IHT Telegraph Independent EurActiv BBC Tagesschau FTD Handelsblatt WSJ

Germany's bad bank scheme criticised
The BBC reports that the German government has agreed a "bad bank" scheme, to enable the country's lenders to remove remaining toxic assets from their balance sheets and start lending again. According to the WSJ, Paul Mortimer-Lee, Chief Economist at BNP Paribas in London, described the plan as "an accounting trick rather than a real resolution of the problem."

In an interview with Le Monde, former Belgian Prime Minister Guy Verhofstadt argues that Europe needs to coordinate its response to the economic crisis instead of having "27 national plans". He adds "Great Britain nationalises, Germany creates a bad bank and France recapitalises...we need to group all toxic assets in a single European structure, recapitalise the banks that can be saved and submit the entire sector to stress tests".
Le Monde WSJ BBC El Pais FT
European Commission launches budget deficit procedure against 4 new countriesAccording to ORF, the European Commission has launched budget deficit procedures against 4 new countries - Lithuania, Malta, Poland and Romania. Procedures have already been started against France, Greece, Ireland, Latvia and Spain.
ORF Le Figaro Forbes Euronews Malta Independent

The WSJ looks at the ECB's predictability during the economic crisis, and quotes James Nixon, an economist with Societe Generale in London saying, "the unpredictability of the ECB's increasingly public disagreement is injecting a lot of uncertainty into the market at a time when it might not be best."
WSJ Bloomberg

Le Monde reports that the controversial Hadopi 'three strikes' internet law was yesterday adopted by the French Senate. The Senate voted in favour of the bill by a majority of 189 to 14.
Le Monde

Official data has shown that industrial production in the eurozone was down 20.2 percent in March 2009, compared to the same month in 2008, the steepest year-on-year drop since records began in 1991.
FT HS

In an interview with Le Figaro, French Prime Minister Francois Fillon argues that it is the first time in a long time "that there is no longer an institutional debate between federal Europe, confederal Europe and member states keen to guard their sovereignty. This debate has been resolved to an extent by enlargement." Le Figaro Le Monde

El País reports that the European Space Agency is launching two telescopes into space today.
El País BBC

EurActiv reports that the EU-Russia summit on 21 May will focus on 'hard security'. Russia's Ambassador to the EU, Vladimir Chizhov, has emphasised the need to advance a new European Security Treaty and transform already existing "rather vague political commitments" into "legally-binding obligations".
EurActiv

In the Guardian, Timothy Garton Ash argues "Even if you are a European with no emotional, intellectual or idealistic attachment whatsoever to the European Union...the rational case for the 27 member states of the EU to have a stronger, more co-ordinated foreign policy is overwhelming."
Guardian

El Mundo reports that the European Court of Justice has condemned Spain for not applying European law on residency permits for foreigners who have been victims of human trafficking to existing national legislation.
El Mundo

World

US and Europe to set benchmarks on nuclear negotiations with Iran
The WSJ reports that the Obama administration and its European allies are setting a target of early October to determine whether engagement with Iran is making progress or should lead to sanctions. They also are developing specific benchmarks to gauge Iranian behaviour, including whether Tehran is willing to let United Nations monitors make snap inspections of Iranian nuclear facilities that are now off-limits.
WSJ

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