EU: Members of the European Parliament yesterday commended the Taoiseach for the results of last week's European Council, but warned him against reducing the powers of the European legislature, writes Tim King in Brussels
Mr Ahern was appearing before the parliament in Strasbourg to report on the outcome of a summit which he said had produced "significant progress" in moving Europe forward.
He gave an account of the conclusions on the summit's three big issues: the declaration on combating terrorism, the negotiations on a new constitution for the EU, and the Lisbon agenda on economic reform.
In the main, his audience welcomed the results of the summit and applauded the efforts of the Irish presidency.
The leader of the Liberal Democrat group, Mr Graham Watson, said: "It has been a while since everyone left a European Council smiling. It was a focused summit which delivered in many respects."
In a debate which made frequent reference to the terrorist attacks in Madrid, the parliamentarians gave broad support to the anti-terrorism agenda. Both the leader of the socialists, Mr Enrique Barón Crespo, and the leader of the centre-right, Mr Hans-Gert Poettering, urged the national governments to allow greater co-ordination between intelligence services.
The Fine Gael MEP Mrs Avril Doyle struck a rare note of discord by criticising on the council's conclusions on the Lisbon agenda.
There had been no progress on practical transposition of the necessary reforms in the member-states, she complained.
Although MEPs welcomed the revival of talks on a new constitution, several urged Mr Ahern to conclude negotiations before the European Parliament elections in early June.
The Labour MEP Proinsias De Rossa was concerned that negotiations might degenerate into backroom deals. He urged the Taoiseach to maintain the openness which had characterised the preparation of the Inter-Governmental Conference in the constitutional convention.
Mr Ahern told the parliament: "I can guarantee that you will not be bypassed or blindsided in the negotiations. I want all participants to be able to recommend the final outcome to the people of Europe as fair, balanced and positive."