The new EU Lisbon Treaty due to be signed this month would consolidate
the position where only the non-elected will have the right to propose
legislation in the EU. The Commission would be more powerful than
ever if the EU Constitution is put in place and would exercise legislative,
executive and judicial authority. The Commission in Brussels would
retain the sole right to propose legislation, and in many more areas
after ratification.
A minor concession towards direct democracy was achieved which
consists of the right for a million voters to sign a petition to
put forward a proposal to the Commission. But, the Commission is
not obliged to listen. This is the only direct nod to voters in
the text of the Lisbon Treaty. In no way is this impractical concession
a substitute for the huge loss of democracy by the Member States.
Even with one million voters the Commission, who meet and take
decisions in secret, has no need to answer or respond to the voters.
The Commission does not answer to voters and cannot be kicked out
at the next election because that democratic process is non-existent.
Prime Ministers appoint the Commissioners. After 2014 the Commission
would be cut in size and there would only be Commissioners from
two thirds of the Member States. The President and Commissioners
would depend on a super-qualified majority vote of 20 out of 27
Prime Ministers. Even though these nominations have to be approved
by the European Parliament the MEPs can only have a 'yes' or 'no'
vote on the President and the whole of the Commission. MEPs cannot
nominate Commissioners or the President.
Prime Ministers are elected as a result of general elections where
voters have a direct influence on who they want as a government
after the election. In contrast voters have no direct influence
over, or on the formation of, the government of the EU - the Commission.
This means that the unelected control nearly everything and leaves
those elected just with the ability to influence. The electors across
the EU cannot remove those who have taken control and can only elect
those who have influence.
As most laws are now generated by the Commission in Brussels, MPs
at Westminster only act as rubber stamps for EU legislation, most
of which they do not see and in any case cannot change. Increasingly
this would leave parliament as an empty shell with no powers and
the electorate going through the motions of electing MPs who have
no power to legislate.
After 2014 with the reduced size of the Commission, one third of
Member States would not even have a Commissioner. Voting by Prime
Ministers using super-qualified-voting leaves Member States ending
up in a minority and possibly without a Commissioner, having no
influence whatever over EU matters.
To sum up:
the unelected have the power and right to legislate. Voters
and the elected only have 'influence' which can be ignored. That
is the parlous condition direct democracy has been brought to in
the EU which would be worsened still by ratification of the Lisbon
EU Constitutional Treaty.
Governments must make clear to the electorate the implications
and where the powers to legislate and govern will lie.
Electorates must have the right to reject or accept this proposed
system of government in a fair referendum.