Jump to content
Join the Unexplained Mysteries community today! It's free and setting up an account only takes a moment.
- Sign In or Create Account -

France makes room for EU treaty


Talon

Recommended Posts

France makes room for EU treaty

The French parliament has adopted an amendment to the country's constitution, paving the way for a referendum on the new EU charter.

Prime Minister Jean-Pierre Raffarin said the amendment was a consequence of a fundamental and positive development in the organisation of Europe.

The special joint session of both houses of parliament took place in the historic Palace of Versailles.

President Jacques Chirac is later due to announce a date for the referendum.

Analysts say it will probably be in late May or early June.

Legal hurdle

Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen announced on Monday that Denmark would hold a referendum on the EU constitution on 27 September.

In France, a vote to amend the country's constitution was needed after the Constitutional Council ruled it could not legally coexist with the EU constititution under current law.

The BBC's Allan Little in Paris says support for the EU document among France's governing elite is such that approval was expected.

Parliament voted with 730 votes in favour and 66 against, with 96 abstentions.

"A Yes to Europe is the right response to the challenges of the 21st Century," Mr Raffarin told lawmakers at the palace where Louis XIV once exercised absolute power and where world leaders redrew the map of Europe after World War I.

"Europe is neither Right nor Left, Europe is our future, it is our destiny."

Turkey fears

Our correspondent says that despite their leaders' enthusiasm for the EU treaty, the French electorate have a habit of using referendums to punish unpopular governments. Many pro-Europeans could vote No to signal their more general dissatisfaction.

And then there is the question of Turkey's application for EU membership.

France's Eurosceptics are trying to persuade voters that saying Yes to the European constitution amounts to the same thing as saying Yes to Turkey - and most French voters strongly oppose that.

Polls show that most French people support the new constitution for Europe, but it is by no means certain that that is how they will vote in the referendum.

All 25 members of the European Union must ratify the treaty by public referendum or parliamentary vote before it can come into force.

Story from BBC NEWS:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/1/hi/worl...ope/4303151.stm

Link to comment
Share on other sites

 
  • Replies 1
  • Created
  • Last Reply

Top Posters In This Topic

  • Talon

    2

Popular Days

Top Posters In This Topic

Danes set EU vote for September

Denmark will hold a referendum on the EU constitution on 27 September, Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen says.

Danes rejected the EU's Maastricht Treaty in 1992 and euro membership in 2000, but recent opinion polls show a majority would back the new EU charter.

Mr Rasmussen, who heads a centre-right government, was re-elected on 8 February. He said he would campaign for a Yes vote in the referendum.

Spain voted for the constitution on 20 February, in the first such referendum.

A recent poll showed 49% of Danes in favour of the constitution, with 26% against.

Story from BBC NEWS:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/1/hi/worl...ope/4305261.stm

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.