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The first election for a newly expanded European Union, or
EU Parliament recorded an all time low voter turnout, in the
history of the EU.
Less than 45 percent of voters cast their ballots, with many
giving a no confidence vote to their governments in the EU
Parliament.
EU voter participation was even weaker in the 10 new, Eastern
European states, with an average of 26% of votes cast.
What is the significance of the first EU Parliament Election
since the organization expanded to 25 member nations on May
1, this year?
Melanie Yip put the question to Mr. Jose Sales Marques (JSM),
President of the Institute of European Studies in Macau.
JSM: The European Parliament is supposed to represent the
people of Europe. And the fact that it is directly elected
contrasts with the constitutions, namely the commissions,
and the councils. Therefore, it is the most represented institution
of the European Union. However, due to the fact that it is
the responsibility and its competence are not influential
in terms of decision making. There is a perception that this
parliament is not so important, powerful.
Now the EU Parliament was set up in 1979. These is a public
perception that it has very little real powers, and is dogged
with corruption. Is there justification for these perceptions?
JSM: The real issue is that there is a perception that members
of the EU Parliament do enjoy good conditions for their work,
like salary and other benefits. Therefore, the perception
is that this strikes a contrast with the production of usefulness
that the parliament has. Of course, it is not totally right
because the EU Parliament, as a matter of fact, has been gaining
power over the years. And if the constitution of Europe is
approved, the parliament is expected to gain more power.
But what influence does it have in terms of budget approvals,
legislation on trade, environment and consumer affairs?
JSM: It has influence in budget approvals because of the
major stakes in these approvals. Of course, there are always
back door negotiations among the states, which is the work
of respective governments European Commissions. Anyway, the
formal approval of the budget is done by the parliament.
Getting back to the elections, voter turnout was the lowest,
at about 44% in the history of the EU Parliament, since direct
elections began in 1979. What are the possible reasons for
the low turnout?
JSM: The perception that the people, the voters of the new
member states have, regarding the role of the European Parliament
is still very weak. On the other hand, some form of elitism
characterizes the process of integrating the European Union,
or joining the European Union. I would say, the politic elite,
they know what is happening, and are clear about the workings
of the EU. But as we know, and this is not the only problem
of the new states, the problem of the current or old EU members,
the perception of what is going on in the EU is not a general
view. The general public is not aware of what is happening
at the Union level, they do not know how it functions. There
is still a lack of awareness on what the European Union is
about.
It appears that many of the European voters had given a vote
of no confidence for the governments who supported the US-led
invasion of Iraq, and those who adopted unpopular economic
reforms. What does this say about how Europeans in general
feel about the Iraq war?
JSM: The general feeling at this moment is most Europeans
would want the commitment to Iraq to lessen, or to adopt a
different approach to Iraq. What influenced the voting results
might have to do with the internal policies, or domestic policies
like economy, more than the international environment. I’m
sure that the Europeans who voted against their actual government
are more concerned with the issues of livelihood, unemployment,
problems that Europe is going through in terms of economic
problems. Therefore, I would tend not to put too much emphasis
on the international environment.
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Budget 2012 immediate concerns