Brussels, 15/11/2006 (Agence Europe) - Paula Lehtomäki, Finnish European Affairs ministers, brought together her colleagues from the other Member States on the sidelines of the General Affairs Council on 13 November, to discuss several issues related to the European communication policy. Among the topics raised were the celebrations to mark the 50th anniversary of the Treaty of Rome, the Commission's specific White Paper (see EUROPE 9121 and 9122) and the transparency policy with regard to Council work.
Member States were informed of on-going preparations for the 50th anniversary of the Treaty of Rome celebrations, which will take place principally in Berlin on 27 March as part of the forthcoming German Presidency. The Commission and EP have joined to organise the events which will be aimed primarily at young people (see EUROPE 9294). Margot Wallström, the Commissioner with responsibility for information strategy, unveiled to the logo selected by the Commission and European Parliament for the festivities (see EUROPE 9288). While the Commission has stressed the “very positive” welcome from national delegations, Germany would prefer to use the logo which will be used for its Presidency. France also wanted to make sure of the multilingual nature of the illustration and felt that there could be long discussion of the very content of the message.
Member States' governments and parliaments have been invited to involve themselves fully in efforts to communicate on the European Union, particularly through local events and getting young people involved. Ms Wallström made a presentation on the progress made in the White Paper on the European communication policy: after Madrid, on understanding public opinion (see EUROPE 9297), and Bergamo, on involving citizens (see EUROPE 9305), three further follow-up conferences are on the agenda. The Commission will report to heads of state and government and will present an action plan during the celebrations for the 50th anniversary of the Treaty of Rome.
The Commission is concerned by the substantial cuts in allocations for communications activities provided for in the 2007 budget, including those to fund the Treaty of Rome anniversary celebrations. Ministers will adopt their position in second reading on the 2007 budget before final approval by the EP in December.
Finally, Ms Lehtomäki spoke of the measures taken to increase transparency in the work of the Council, a subject particularly dear to the heart of the Finnish Presidency (se EUROPE 9213). “89% of legislative deliberations are public”, said a European source, acknowledging, however, that meetings of foreign and finance ministers are less affected. The Finnish Presidency believes this initiative to be a “positive” experience, which has not changed the nature of the debates, she added, opining that it will be impossible to return to old ways. The Finnish Presidency will carry out an evaluation of the initiative for December's European Council. (mb)