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http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/6901353.stm

The Lisbon Treaty has finally been fully ratified, eight years after European leaders launched a process to make the EU "more democratic, more transparent and more efficient".

Under EU rules, the treaty had to be ratified by all 27 member states before coming into force. The last country to ratify the treaty was the Czech Republic, which completed the process on 3 November 2009. The treaty is expected to officially become law in December. _____________________________________________________________

European Union Reform Moves Ahead
By DAN BILEFSKY and STEPHEN CASTLE
The signature of the Czech president, Vaclav Klaus, has ensured that the treaty to streamline decision-making for the European Union will become law.

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Website Link to Full Treaty of Lisbon:

http://europa.eu/lisbon_treaty/full_text/index_en.htm

 

Summary of the Treaty of Lisbon: http://europa.eu/lisbon_treaty/glance/index_en.htm

 

What does the Treaty of Lisbon change for citizens? The Treaty of Lisbon will seek to reinforce the Union's capacity to act through strengthened external coherence, a broadened range of internal policies, more effective delivery of results and policy achievements for citizens, and modern institutions that work in a Union of 27. http://europa.eu/lisbon_treaty/faq/index_en.htm#1

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WIDE - Women in Development Europe - Publication Link:

http://62.149.193.10/wide/download/Lisbon%20Treaty%20FINAL?id=653

 

The Treaty of Lisbon from a Gender Perspective:

Change and Challenges

Authors: Laura Bisio and Anna Cataldi

 

 

This briefing paper presents the main innovations in terms of institutional changes, policy perspectives and priorities that the Treaty of Lisbon is going to introduce if the EU Member States ratify it. The analysis focuses, in particular, on how the Treaty affects citizenship, human rights and gender equality. It highlights: the need for the actual improvement of democratisation of the EU institutional structure and of decision-making procedures; the potential lack of coherence between the noticeably neo-liberal agenda and the formal commitment in socially oriented policies; and the relative absence of a gender-oriented perspective.

The paper is organised into four chapters and a section of final recommendations. Chapter 1 deals with the institutional changes that the Lisbon Treaty introduces, such as: the empowerment of the European Parliament, the reform of the Commission, the introduction of the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, and slight changes in the functioning of the European Council and the Council. It also describes the changes that will occur in the division of competences between the national Parliaments and the Union. It is envisaged that, in spite of the empowerment of the European Parliament, the main decision-making power will still lie in the hands of non-representative institutions such as the Commission, the Council and the European Council. Therefore, civil society should promote the use of the new democratic tools that have been introduced by the Treaty (the Rights of Citizens initiative, and the greater importance of the Parliament) and the creation of new paths of participation for European citizens.

Chapter 2 presents the priorities of the Treaty in terms of values and rights, especially those that are of interest for WIDE lobbying activity. The analysis shows that gender equality, development, human rights and citizenship rights are issues that the Treaty takes into account but, nevertheless, their actual implementation may be weak, since their related provisions are often vague or incoherent within the whole neo-liberal setting of the Treaty.Except for some provisions that directly address safeguarding women´s rights, the Treaty seems to lack a true gender perspective. For example, the provisions related to gender equality in the labour market have not been improved from the previous Treaty; in addition, some issues that are fundamental for women, such as contraception and abortion, are not mentioned at all in the Charter of Fundamental Rights.

Chapter 3 examines the EU´s foreign and trade policy, external relations and humanitarian activity, as set out by the Treaty. It describes its market-oriented and liberalist trade activity, the military reinforcement the Treaty provides, and the EU´s commitment to humanitarian activities. As remarked in Chapter 2, here the contrast between liberalism and pro-development policies is evident.The proposal to privatise the main public services sector is a very important issue, since it potentially affects the living standards of not only the average consumer, but especially the weakest groups of society and women in particular. The market-oriented intellectual property safeguard strategy should be balanced with the objective of promoting the exchange of knowledge with developing countries.

Chapter 4 deals with past and present debate on the Treaty. It considers the controversies about the failure to approve the EU Constitution and the ongoing ratification process of the Lisbon Treaty, and it analyses the improvements the Treaty makes compared to the Constitution. Since the Treaty of Lisbon is not going to be approved directly by the European citizenship through referenda (besides the Irish referendum), civil society could produce more information to promote awareness about how the Treaty is going to hit or miss crucial targets.

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http://europa.eu/lisbon_treaty/glance/index_en.htm

 

Treaty of Lisbon

 

The Treaty of Lisbon

On 13 December 2007, EU leaders signed the Treaty of Lisbon, thus bringing to an end several years of negotiation about institutional issues.

The Treaty of Lisbon amends the current EU and EC treaties, without replacing them. It will provide the Union with the legal framework and tools necessary to meet future challenges and to respond to citizens' demands.

  1. A more democratic and transparent Europe, with a strengthened role for the European Parliament and national parliaments, more opportunities for citizens to  have  their voices heard and a clearer sense of who does what at European and national level.
    • A strengthened role for the European Parliament: the European Parliament, directly elected by EU citizens, will see important new powers emerge over the EU legislation, the EU budget and international agreements. In particular, the increase of co-decision procedure in policy-making will ensure the European Parliament is placed on an equal footing with the Council, representing Member States, for the vast bulk of EU legislation.
    • A greater involvement of national parliaments: national parliaments will have greater opportunities to be involved in the work of the EU, in particular thanks to a new mechanism to monitor that the Union only acts where results can be better attained at EU level (subsidiarity). Together with the strengthened role for the European Parliament, it will enhance democracy and increase legitimacy in the functioning of the Union.
    • A stronger voice for citizens: thanks to the Citizens' Initiative, one million citizens from a number of Member States will have the possibility to call on the Commission to bring forward new policy proposals.
    • Who does what: the relationship between the Member States and the European Union will become clearer with the categorisation of competences.
    • Withdrawal from the Union: the Treaty of Lisbon explicitly recognises for the first time the possibility for a Member State to withdraw from the Union.
  1. A more efficient Europe, with simplified working methods and voting rules, streamlined and modern institutions for a EU of 27 members and an improved ability to act in areas of major priority for today's Union.
    • Effective and efficient decision-making: qualified majority voting in the Council will be extended to new policy areas to make decision-making faster and more efficient. From 2014 on, the calculation of qualified majority will be based on the double majority of Member States and people, thus representing the dual legitimacy of the Union.A double majority will be achieved when a decision is taken by 55% of the Member States representing at least 65% of the Union’s population.
    • A more stable and streamlined institutional framework: the Treaty of Lisbon creates the function of President of the European Council elected for two and a half years, introduces a direct link between the election of the Commission President and the results of the European elections, provides for new arrangements for the future composition of the European Parliament and for a smaller Commission, and includes clearer rules on enhanced cooperation and financial provisions.
    • Improving the life of Europeans: the Treaty of Lisbon improves the EU's ability to act in several policy areas of major priority for today's Union and its citizens. This is the case in particular for the policy areas of freedom, security and justice, such as combating terrorism or tackling crime. It also concerns to some extent other areas including energy policy, public health, civil protection, climate change, services of general interest, research, space, territorial cohesion, commercial policy, humanitarian aid, sport, tourism and administrative cooperation.
  1. A Europe of rights and values, freedom, solidarity and security, promoting the Union's values, introducing the Charter of Fundamental Rights into European primary law, providing for new solidarity mechanisms and ensuring better protection of European citizens.
    • Democratic values: the Treaty of Lisbon details and reinforces the values and objectives on which the Union is built. These values aim to serve as a reference point for European citizens and to demonstrate what Europe has to offer its partners worldwide.
    • Citizens' rights and Charter of Fundamental Rights: the Treaty of Lisbon preserves existing rights while introducing new ones. In particular, it guarantees the freedoms and principles set out in the Charter of Fundamental Rights and gives its provisions a binding legal force. It concerns civil, political, economic and social rights.
    • Freedom of European citizens: the Treaty of Lisbon preserves and reinforces the "four freedoms" and the political, economic and social freedom of European citizens.
    • Solidarity between Member States: the Treaty of Lisbon provides that the Union and its Member States act jointly in a spirit of solidarity if a Member State is the subject of a terrorist attack or the victim of a natural or man-made disaster.  Solidarity in the area of energy is also emphasised.
    • Increased security for all: the Union will get an extended capacity to act on freedom, security and justice, which will bring direct benefits in terms of the Union's ability to fight crime and terrorism. New provisions on civil protection, humanitarian aid and public health also aim at boosting the Union's ability to respond to threats to the security of European citizens.
  1. Europe as an actor on the global stage will be achieved by bringing together Europe's external policy tools, both when developing and deciding new policies. The Treaty of Lisbon will give Europe a clear voice in relations with its partners worldwide. It will harness Europe's economic, humanitarian, political and diplomatic strengths to promote European interests and values worldwide, while respecting the particular interests of the Member States in Foreign Affairs.
    • A new High Representative for the Union in Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, also Vice-President of the Commission, will increase the impact, the coherence and the visibility of the EU's external action.
    • A new European External Action Service will provide back up and support to the High Representative.
    • A single legal personality for the Union will strengthen the Union's negotiating power, making it more effective on the world stage and a more visible partner for third countries and international organisations.
    • Progress in European Security and Defence Policy will preserve special decision-making arrangements but also pave the way towards reinforced cooperation amongst a smaller group of Member States.

 





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