24 April 2012
Dear Sirs,
In view of the meetings the AFCO will hold to draw up a report on 'Constitutional problems of multi-tier governance in the European Union', the European Federalist Movement (MFE), the Italian section of the UEF (Union of European Federalists), appeals to you to take the lead in drafting a comprehensive plan to re-launch the European federation project.
With the signing, by 25 EU member states, of the new Fiscal Compact Treaty, the EU has entered a new phase in the process of European unification. A phase in which the heads of state and of government, in an attempt to respond to the emergencies posed by the crisis, have acknowledged the political need to activate mechanisms, introduce rules and create institutions that go beyond the current Treaties. The Fiscal Compact is certainly still inadequate, given its intergovernmental nature, and it fails to resolve the difficult questions of solidarity and of the democratic legitimacy of decisions taken, and still to be taken, at European level. But it nevertheless represents a crucial attempt (to which there is no real alternative in the current European framework) to restore confidence and hope among the peoples and to try to respond, in a more timely and effective way than the single national governments and European institutions are able to do, to the challenges posed by the globalization of finance, the economy and production processes. Now it is up to the European Parliament to make concrete political proposals to deal with the problem of governing the Euro and the European economy in a more effective, democratic and sustainable way.
Indeed, in order to create an effective and democratic government of the European economy, in our opinion it will be necessary to tackle two major and still unresolved questions: the issue of democratic legitimacy and that of re-launching the European economy on new foundations.
For this reason, we call on you to take, without delay, concrete steps towards the definition of a political plan to institutionalize a de facto – but not yet de jure - “two-speed Europe”, proposing Treaties’ reforms to ensure the coexistence of countries that have adopted the euro and those that have chosen to keep their national currency; and also reforms to allow the creation of an economic government of the eurozone, endowed with real powers, democratically legitimized at supranational level.
We believe that the European Parliament, has a crucial role to play: the promotion of a constitutional political project capable of involving representatives of the European citizens and European institutions through the convening of a constitutional assembly/convention, whose task will be to define a federal constitutional framework that will convey democratic legitimacy to European monetary and economic government.
On our behalf, we’ll do everything is in our possibilities to mobilize the political and social organizations and the public opinion to support the achievement of these goals. We’ll keep you informed about our next political initiatives and contributions on all that.
With the highest respect,
Lucio Levi (National President) Franco Spoltore (National secretary)
