Open Europe press summary: 17 July 2009

Europe

New poll shows 70% of Germans are against bailing out Ireland
Amid the ongoing recession and speculation about the extent to which EU member states can or will help each other out, Open Europe, in collaboration with the Institute for Free Enterprise in Berlin, today publishes a new poll which shows that 70% of Germans are against using public money to bail out other countries that have got into financial difficulties.

This is in spite of indications from the German government that it may be planning to offer financial help to some countries, particularly Ireland.

Voters were asked: "In the course of the current economic and financial crisis, individual countries such as Ireland and Greece have got into financial difficulties. The German Federal Government has indicated that Germany would be prepared to financially support countries like Ireland "which have been hit quite hard by the banking crisis". With this in mind, which of the following comes closest to your view?"

24.8% agreed with the statement "I believe that German taxpayers' money should be spent on helping countries like Ireland or Greece." 70.9% agreed with the statement "I believe that German taxpayers' money should not be spent on helping countries like Ireland or Greece." 3.4% said they don't know.
Press release Press release in German

Lib Dem Sharon Bowles takes up Chair of EP committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs;
Says she will not lobby for City of London, and "Ultimately the UK will not be able to stay out the Euro"
MEPs yesterday selected new Committee Chairs for the European Parliament. Euractiv reports that Italy was given control of the highest number of committees, followed by France and Germany. A large number of Vice-Chairs are also Italian. The ALDE group of Liberals and Democrats secured control of the two economic committees, with German Liberal MEP Wolf Klinz chairing a special committee on the financial crisis, while British MEP Sharon Bowles will chair the committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs (ECON).

According to EUobserver, before her election, Sharon Bowles moved to ally concerns that her origins from a non-euro country could jeopardise the committee's work by saying she was a strong supporter of the single currency. She told journalists: "Ultimately the UK will not be able to stay out of the Euro if you look into the long-term when it is a major reserve currency". She also said she would not be lobbying for the banking interests of the city of London, indicating she intended to clearly distinguish between her personal views as an MEP and her duty to be an independent chairwoman. She said: "If I may be so bold, I think I will probably demark this [joint role] more clearly than has previously been the case with some continental chairs".

UK Conservative MEP Malcolm Harbour has been elected to lead the Internal Market and Consumer Protection committee (IMCO) and German Christian Democrat Herbert Reul will chair the Industry committee (ITRE). EUobserver reports that some describe him as a "climate sceptic".

The socialist group secured more traditional centre-left portfolios, like environment, social affairs and civil liberties. Pervenche Berès, a French socialist, will head the Employment and Social Affairs committee (EMPL), while German S&D MEP Jo Leinen was elected chair of the Environment committee (ENVI).

Swedish GUE/NGL MEP Eva-Britt Svensson, appointed chair of the committee on Women's Rights, declared: "This is a strategic post for the left, where we can finally have a role in defining the agenda and working towards stronger commitments for gender equality at EU level." Listing her priorities as committee chair, Eva-Britt Svensson said she would work towards the appointment of an EU commissioner responsible for gender equality as well as the development of a new EU action plan on gender equality.
Times EurActiv EUobserver El Mundo Toute L'Europe

Liberals in European Parliament demand new EU Commissioner for fundamental rights and anti-discrimination
Euractiv reports that Guy Verhofstadt, leader of the European Parliament's Liberal group, has sent a list of demands to Commission President José Manuel Barroso in return for his group's support for nominating the Portuguese for a second term at the EU executive's helm. The list includes the creation of a new portfolio for fundamental rights and anti-discrimination in the next EU Commission. The vote for Barroso's second term as EU commission president has been provisionally scheduled for 16 September.
Irish Times Coulisses de Bruxelles DN FT: Brussels blog Standard Welt Frankfurter Allgemeine Euractiv

Ken Clarke: "The last thing I want" is for Cameron to renegotiate EU treaties and competence
Following an interview with Ken Clarke, Shadow Business Secretary, the FT reports that "Mr Clarke wants to maintain Britain's opt-out from the working time directive and limit any further moves on the agency workers directive, but he admits that the old 'social chapter' has 'not produced a great deal of legislation recently'." It adds: "However, he does not want Mr Cameron to try to renegotiate Britain's membership of the EU, something that would require treaty change and unanimous support from other countries", and quotes him saying, "The last thing I want is to go back to any more tortuous negotiations about treaties and competence."
FT

EU to buy 31 000 tonnes of excess butter and 50 000 tonnes of skimmed milk powder
The EU will increase its policy of buying excess butter from its farmers, as only the UK, Sweden and Denmark favoured a more market oriented policy. The EU will buy 31 000 tonnes of excess butter and 50 000 tonnes of skimmed milk powder in a bid to artificially keep prices above the market level. EU Agriculture Minister Eskil Erlandsson noted that 24 out 27 member states explicitly opposed a liberalisation of the agricultural sector.

An opinion in DN says the CAP is a "fiasco" as no stakeholders benefit from the policy, including farmers. Sydsvenskan argues that Sweden has long campaigned for radical reform of the CAP but has few supporters.
Sydsvenskan DN Sydsvenskan

IHT investigates EU CAP subsidies for non-farmers
An article in the IHT looks extensively at the distribution of EU farm subsidies, particularly those to non-farmers, including royalty, the Roman Catholic Church, and big multinationals. According to an analysis of the data provided by all EU member states on how they distribute money from farm subsidies, hundreds of millions of euros are being paid to individuals and companies with little or no connection to traditional farming. It found the heftiest sums flow to multinational companies like food conglomerates, sugar manufacturers and liquor distillers. In France, the single largest beneficiary was the chicken processor Groupe Doux, at €62.8 million, followed by about a dozen sugar manufacturers that together reaped more than €103 million.

The queen of England qualified for £473,500 in total farm aid in 2008 for Sandringham Farms in England, while Prince Albert II of Monaco collected €507,972 in 2008 for his wheat farms in France. Cargill, the food producer that is the largest privately held company in the US, collected €10.5 million in EU subsidies, collecting them from eight EU countries where it operates.

The article notes that it is difficult to know exactly how much subsidy money goes to non-farmers, as some of the information the 27 countries provided was vague, with the real recipients hidden. The EU itself says it would be too complicated to calculate how much non-farmers receive. It notes that according to the European Commission, subsidies cost each EU citizen around €110 a year.
IHT

Icelandic Parliament narrowly approves starting EU accession process
The WSJ reports that the Icelandic Parliament voted narrowly yesterday for the government to initiate proceedings for EU accession. 33 of the 63 Icelandic MPs voted in favour of the measure with two abstentions.

A leader in the FT notes that "talk of fast-tracking Icelandic membership is misplaced", with France and Germany already having declared that there will be no agreement on new negotiations until the Lisbon Treaty has been ratified. The article also notes that despite Iceland already applying most EU laws, "fisheries will be a major obstacle". The article adds "Iceland's bid may fall victim to bureaucratic gridlock and to political manoeuvering in other areas" and "a best-case scenario would not see an Icelandic commissioner in Brussels before 2012".
WSJ FT FT 2 FT: Leader Independent EUobserver EurActiv El Mundo El Pais ABC La Razon DN AFP BBC BBC 2 Guardian Guardian 2 Irish Times European Voice Telegraph Standard EU Observer Sueddeutsche Spiegel Welt Der Standard Frankfurter Allgemeine DN

Independent: Blair will only go for EU Presidency if he's sure he can win
The Independent reports that Tony Blair is now an official candidate for the position of first president of the EU, but that "he does not want to throw his hat into the ring unless he is sure of landing the job." An unnamed ally is quoted saying: "He wants it, but he does not want to be humiliated by failing to get it." He is also said to only want the new title if it is a big job, as Europe's representative to the world. However, while French President Nicolas Sarkozy is rumoured to have switched his support from Blair to Felipe Gonzales, the former Spanish Prime Minister, German Chancellor Angela Merkel is also thought to be less than enthusiastic and may support Wolfgang Schussel, the former Austrian chancellor, despite likely opposition from France.

The paper reports that the Conservatives made clear yesterday that if the EU President were not appointed until after the election and they were in power, they would not endorse Mr Blair's candidacy. "We don't think Europe needs a president and we oppose the treaty," a senior Conservative source said. "If the treaty is ratified, we would oppose Blair. We didn't spend a decade fighting him to suddenly want to see him in this post." The paper reports that other names in the frame are Angela Merkel herself, Luxembourg's Jean-Claude Juncker and Dutch PM Jan Peter Balkenende.

On his blog, Dan Hannan MEP suggests that Tony Blair may have given away the British rebate from the EU budget "for nothing" back in 2005, in the hope of securing support for the position of EU President. In the Guardian, Labour MP Denis MacShane argues Blair would be a good choice.

Handelsblatt reports that the greens in the European Parliament have expressed their strong discontent to Tony Blair becoming EU President.
Independent Telegraph: Hannan blog Guido Fawkes blog Economist: Charlemagne's notebook Guardian Figaro Monde Handelsblatt

Verheugen warns Germany could become weaker as a result of Court ruling
In an interview with Handelsblatt, German EU Commissioner Günter Verheugen has urged the Bavarian CSU party to lower its demands to strengthen the German Parliament's say in EU matters, saying: "This really concerns me...if indeed the Bundestag had to be consulted for each single piece of legislation, Germany would become weaker in the EU". A comment in Die Welt notes that "EU rebellion is in the blood of Bavaria", adding that it has a rich historical experience in guarding its sovereignty.

Meanwhile, the Irish Times notes that the CSU general secretary in Germany has called for referendums to be introduced in EU matters such the accession of Croatia and Turkey. A poll commissioned by Open Europe last month showed that 77 percent of Germans want a referendum on the Lisbon Treaty.
Irish Times Handelsblatt Welt OE poll

Commission proposes regulation to secure EU gas supplies
EurActiv reports that the European Commission yesterday proposed a new regulation on the security of gas supplies, obliging member states to take pre-emptive measures to avoid disruptions. The proposal authorises the Commission to declare a Community emergency at the request of a single member state, or when the Union loses more than 10% of its daily gas import from third countries. It also entitles the Commission to coordinate member-state actions between one another and towards third countries. Member states would also have to designate an authority to look after security of their gas supplies.

DPA reports that the new Chairman of the European Parliament's Industry Committee, German MEP Herbert Reul, has warned that the Commission could be trying to extend its own power.

Meanwhile an article in the Economist looks at the Nabucco pipeline project and argues that market liberalisation of energy markets is an important part of ensuring EU energy security.
Economist WSJ EurActiv European Voice Frankfurter Allgemeine DPA CDU CSU press release El Pais

Die Welt writes that serious irregularities have been discovered in financial support to EU candidate countries in the Balkans. A total of 6600 irregularities have been exposed in 2008, accounting for an increase of 9% compared to the last year, while the cost is estimated at €783 million.
Welt

Deutsche Welle reports that German Interior Minister Wolfgang Schäuble does not support a request to spread out asylum seekers in the EU. Handelsblatt writes that Cyprus and Italy called for "more solidarity" in the EU on immigration and border control issues during an informal meeting of EU ministers.
DW Handelsblatt Focus

Writing in the Times Dieter Helm, Professor of Energy Policy at the University of Oxford, argues that addressing carbon emissions from burning coal is the question that climate change must address, and resources should be put towards research in technology, rather than promoting wind energy. He writes, "This is not all the Government's fault: the Copenhagen negotiations and the EU directive all focus on 2020 [targets]."
Times: Helm

In an interview with La Razón, Swedish European Affairs Minister Celia Malmstrom says the "continued implementation of the Lisbon strategy and of the economic and structural reforms are of maximum importance". When asked whether the Lisbon Treaty will be implemented in 2010, she said "of course I hope so", adding that "Sweden could be the first Presidency to apply the new Treaty".
La Razon Figaro

The BBC looks at Michal Kaminski, the new leader of the new Conservative group in the European Parliament. It reports that Mr Kaminski is "not above using discriminatory language about homosexuals" and Robert Beidron, a board member for Poland's campaign Against Homophobia has said that Kaminski "has become a symbol of homophobia in Europe."
BBC

The Guardian reports that President Sarkozy has today paid back €14,000 to the state after family bills were processed using government accounts. In the first audit of a French leader's spending since Louis XVI, it emerged that he had not known that the expenses had gone through palace accounts and had repaid them immediately.
Guardian

An EU court of auditors report was released yesterday, criticising the efficiency of personnel selection activities.
Court of Auditors report

World

The WSJ reports that Russia's First Deputy Prime Minister Igor Shuvalov has said that Russia could join the World Trade Organisation in 2010 if the US delivers its promised backing to Moscow's bid.
WSJ ICTSD

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