MEPs to vote on EU Constitution

The European Parliament will be the third legislative
body to vote on the EU Constitution, on 12 January. A debate
precedes the vote on 11 January.

The Corbett – De Vigo report, under discussion by MEPs
ahead of the plenary vote on 12 January, explains in
layman’s terms the advantages of the Constitution as compared with
the current treaty structure. In a longer explanatory
document they then look at the changes in greater depth. The main
line of the text is that the Constitution brings greater clarity,
greater effectiveness and a strengthened role in the world to the
EU as well as more democratic accountability and more rights for
citizens.

In special annexes, the draftsmen list the new cases
in which qualified majority voting applies as well as the
legislative acts where the ordinary legislative procedure (formerly
known as ‘co-decision’ procedure) is to be used.

With the adoption of the Corbett – de Vigo report the European
Parliament’s information campaign on the EU Constitution will get
underway. The EP building in Strasbourg will be decorated with
words from and the image of the Constitution and as ratification
progresses, the word “yes” will appear in the respective
countries’ languages.

An overview of the EP’s historical role in
European integration and of the ratification process in each
country complements the text of the draft resolution in the
EP’s ‘special pack’.

Read more with Euractiv

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