EU:Dutch prime minister Jan Peter Balkenende said yesterday Europe did not need a constitution, but does need changes to existing treaties to help make it work better.
In his first comments on the EU constitution since announcing the new Dutch coalition's programme for government, Mr Balkenende said the Netherlands would like a slimmed down and simple text in a new institutional agreement.
"The European constitution is not the answer . . . The new treaty must really be different . . . The new text should simply change and supplement the current treaties where needed," he said.
Dutch and French voters rejected the constitution in referendums in 2005, putting on hold plans to streamline decision-making in the EU. Germany, current holder of the EU presidency, is holding bilateral negotiations with all 27 EU states to see how it can resurrect the constitution or agree a new treaty to meet demands of all states.
Dutch policy on Europe has been confused over the past two months while it negotiated a new coalition following elections last November. But now it is clear that the Netherlands wants to significantly alter the draft constitution.
The programme highlights the importance of tackling cross-border problems such as energy, asylum and terrorism on a European level. But, it stresses the need for subsidiarity, where decisions are taken at the lowest political level; and that member states should retain sovereignty on education, health and social services.