Brussels, 05/03/2002 (Agence Europe) - The growing trend for employing inter-governmental methods in preference to that of the Community method in many Member States, particularly in larger countries, was condemned on 5 March by Peter Sutherland, former European Commissioner for Competition and former Director General at GATT. His remarks came at the end of the European Policy Centre's annual Advisory Council meeting, presided over by Stanley Crossick, and for which Sutherland is the Chairman. Peter Sutherland regretted that this trend for creating an Intergovernmental Europe which will not work, was occurring in capital cities throughout the European Union, not just at the Council in Brussels and that if the system were to work effectively, the opposite would be needed with the "supranational" institutions functioning efficiently. Mr Sutherland pointed out that over the years, these institutions "had created a real community of interests and a new form of government". The former European Commissioner was outraged by the criticism systematically emanating from EU capitals against the European Commission.
At the time the Convention begins its work on the Future of Europe, Mr Sutherland expressed his worry that the Council, "takes it upon itself the right to examine its own functioning and propose its own solutions". Peter Sutherland asserted that the Community method had served them well and it would be a "tragic failure to lose it now". Mr Sutherland believes that the Convention on the Future of Europe ought to logically recognise the necessity of a supranational Europe. Whilst respecting Javier Solana and the efforts he has made in the extremely difficult role he is burdened with, Mr Sutherland asked "how much more positive and constructive" this role could have been if it had been taken on by the European Commission. According to Mr Sutherland, the Secretariat of the EU should be and remain a secretariat, while the Commission should assume the role of Executive with the exclusive right of initiative.