Treaty aims to bring people together

I WAS struck by the number of letters (June 27) questioning the democratic nature of the EU.

Caitriona Connolly, for example, writes that ratification of the Lisbon Treaty will lead to “surrendering our sovereignty and handing over our right to decide our own affairs.”

This is untrue. One of the main purposes of the treaty is to provide for a closer connection between the people of the EU and its institutions. The treaty actually strengthens democracy within the union by giving a greater say to national parliaments and the European Parliament. And ordinary citizens, for the first time, will be able directly to influence the political agenda of the EU through the citizens’ initiative. In fact, the EU attaches such importance to the role of democracy that it took eight full years to negotiate this treaty. It reflects the fact that the EU is not just a union of states but also a union of peoples.