Brussels, 31/05/2005 (Agence Europe) - In Luxembourg on Tuesday, Jean-Claude Juncker continued his consultations ahead of the European Council of 16/17 June, discussing the impact of the French 'No' vote on the Constitution, meeting from Monday to Wednesday with, in turn, Spanish prime minister Zapatero, Malta's pm Gonzi, Finland's pm Vanhanen, Slovakia's pm Dzurinda, Portuguese pm Scorates, Austria's Chancellor Schussel and Hungary's pm Gyurcsany. Juncker will be meeting President Chirac on Thursday. No information has emerged about any of the meetings.
At its weekly meeting on Wednesday, the European Commission will discuss the impact of the French 'Non', said spokesperson Francoise Le Bail on Tuesday.
President Chirac has spoken by phone with the President of the European Council, Jean-Claude Juncker, the President of the European Commission, Jose Manuel Barroso, Chancellor Schroder, the Spanish pm Zapatero, Belgium's pm Verhofstadt and the British pm, Tony Blair. A spokesperson for President Chirac said that the French President had discussed the results of the referendum in all the phone calls, stating that as a founder member of the EU, France would continue to work with its partners in the spirit of the European project and that in Chirac's view, the ratification process should continue.
Meanwhile, it appears that the UK will not be announcing until 6 June whether or not it will be holding its own referendum on the Constitution. Jack Straw will make an announcement when he opens the new parliament at the House of Commons on 6 June. On Monday, Tony Blair called for a moment of reflection on the French No vote and its impact and on the Dutch referendum on Wednesday. Chancellor Schussel raised the idea again of holding a European referendum on the Constitution on the same day in all 25 Member States. In an interview with Der Standard, Schussel said nobody supported the idea in the past, but he would be putting it on the negotiating table again at the European Council.