Ahern ‘intent’ on saving EU constitution

TAOISEACH BERTIE AHERN will begin work immediately on trying to get the new European Constitution back on track.

After the spectacular collapse of the inter-governmental conference in Brussels at the weekend, as the incoming president he was asked to prepare a report on exactly where the document stands.

His work over coming months will prove crucial in preventing the EU’s fracture into a two-speed union, as threatened by France and Germany.

A spokesperson for the Government said yesterday: “The Taoiseach is intent on working hard at this and while nobody knows what can be achieved, he wants to have a good shot at it.”

The Government, which takes over the EU presidency in January, will begin making contacts with the other 24 countries involved to sound out where they stand after they failed to reach agreement at the weekend.

Mr Ahern will also visit the heads of governments in coming months before he presents his report on the state of the proposed constitution to the leaders’ summit on March 25 and 26.

While several of the countries said they did not believe it possible to get agreement on the constitution until 2005, Mr Ahern is willing to give it a go if he judges the mood is right.

“I cannot make an assessment before I see all the documents and see how far apart people are. But the Irish presidency will play its part to the best of our ability,” he said.

French president Jacques Chirac, along with German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder, pulled the plug on the meeting when they feared the 85% of the constitution already agreed was in danger of being unravelled.

They were particularly concerned when the British said all their red line issues were being resolved after Prime Minister Tony Blair spent a lot of time meeting Mr Berlusconi.

Mr Chirac immediately threatened a two-speed Europe with what he called pioneering countries interested in greater integration forging ahead. “It would be a motor that would set an example. It would allow Europe to go faster, better,” he said.

Mr Schroeder said there was no agreement because “one or other country put the European ideal behind national interest”. He warned a two-speed Europe was “a logical result”.

Other founding members such as Luxembourg and Holland favour the core Europe idea, while, over the weekend, Greece and at least one candidate country, Hungary, said it was interested in joining such a core.