One President of the EU – whodoicall.eu(Deutsche version unten)
| On the eve of the European Summit in Brussels a new initiative has been launched calling for One President of the EU. The website address whodoicall.eu refers to Henry Kissinger’s famous quote “Who do I call if I want to call Europe?” and demands that the same person should be the President of the European Commission and President of the European Council – the only way to achieve democratic accountability. The campaign is the initiative of 2 political bloggers, Jon Worth and Jan Seifert. |
“As Heads of State and Government meet today and start to think about candidates for leading positions in the EU next year we ask them, the press, and European citizens, to think differently,” stated Jon Worth.
“The new European Council President position – the subject of much speculation – is not democratically accountable. That’s unacceptable in an EU with a democratic deficit,” continued Jon Worth.
Stated Jan Seifert: “Valéry Giscard d’Estaing has questioned the democratic legitimacy of the European Council position. We have the answer for him. The same person holding both positions is the best option.“
“The Commission President is already accountable to the European Parliament, and the European Council position should be granted to that same person once the EP has approved the Commission,” continued Jan Seifert. “The President of the European Council position on its own – undefined, unaccountable, unscrutinized – is a recipe for friction and division in the EU’s leadership. One President would solve that.”
The initiative for One President of the EU is starting online at the website www.whodoicall.eu where visitors can sign a petition in favour of the idea, and debate in the Campaign Blog. The Q&A page explains how One President would work both legally and practically. Supporters can also join the Who Do I Call group in the social networking website Facebook. |
