Strasbourg, 16/11/2005 (Agence Europe) - In plenary on Wednesday afternoon, the predominant feeling was disappointment at the outcome of the special Summit at Hampton Court on 27 October, reiterating that agreement had to be reached on the Financial Perspectives for 2007-2013 at the 15-16 December European Council. Agreeing on the Financial Perspectives will be the 'defining moment' for the British Presidency, said the President of the European Commission, Jose Manuel Barroso, addressing the European Parliament. The President of the Council, UK foreign minister Jack Straw, retorted that the defining moment of the British Presidency was in fact the 3rd of October, the date when accession negotiations were opened with Turkey.
Hampton Court reached broad agreement on the direction the EU should be taking and was a key part of the debate on the future of Europe, which is far from finished, said Jack Straw, adding that Jose Manuel Barroso's paper for the Summit had been one of the best and most insightful on the future of Europe over the past three years. Outlining the main results of the Hampton Court Summit in six areas (R&D, European universities, demographic ageing, energy, security and the EU's role in the world), Straw said interim reports on all six areas would be submitted to the December European Council. On the Financial Perspectives, he pointed out that five countries had opposed the Luxembourg Presidency's compromise at the June 2005 summit, and agreement would be needed from all 25 Member States in December. He explained that early in December, the British Presidency would be unveiling proposals to be discussed by a group of EU foreign ministers. Agreement on the future funding of the EU would require a timetable for a review of all aspects of revenue and expenditure; changes to the way spending is structured; and significant changes to the own resources proposals, which would have to be 'fair and balanced' for all Member States (the question of the British rebate, in short). 'I don't want anybody to be taken by surprise, I mean significant changes,' hammered home the British foreign minister.
Jack Straw also mentioned the EU's draft chemicals legislation, REACH, commenting that 'nobody wants to be poisoned by chemicals, but the European chemicals industry must not be brought to its knees'. On the working time directive on which the British Presidency wants a decision to be taken before the end of the year, he pointed out that the United Kingdom is the second best country in Europe in terms of the lowest number of days at work lost through accidents at work, and the third best in terms of death at work, rejecting 'rigid pan-European working time limits'. Europe will return to the debate.