Fel debat in Zweden over wenselijkheid Europese president (en)
Auteur: Luise Hemmer Pihl
The Swedish Prime Minister is coming under increasing domestic pressure over the EU Constitution.
During the Swedish Parliament's question time on Tuesday (21 October), MPs repeatedly asked Göran Persson if Sweden would say "yes" to an EU President even if parliamentarians were to reject the post.
For his part, Mr Persson warned that it would be difficult for Sweden to be the only country to say "no".
In his report to Riksdagen (Swedish Parliament), Mr Persson said that everybody now accepts the EU President proposed in the Draft EU Constitution, writes Dagens Nyheter.
Opposition politicians asked whether the government intended to present two different opinions on the matter to the Intergovernmental Conference (IGC) which is debating the Constitution, or only the government's own favourable opinion.
Mr Persson said he thought that it would be difficult for him to get sympathetic consideration from his European colleagues, if he went against the proposal.
But he also stressed that he had not expressed any opinion on this issue on the Intergovernmental Conference, but that he would return to it later, according to Dagens Nyheter.
Call for referendum on Constitution
Swedish MP and former MEP, Sören Wibe, who was leader of the Social Democratic campaign against EMU membership prior to the September 14 referendum, is now demanding a referendum on the Constitution.
"It presents such a radical change in our way of governing that we ought to let the people have a say in a binding referendum", he says, according to Ekot/Sveriges Radio.
But Mr Persson intends to let the Parliament decide on this issue.
"When the people vote in national elections they also vote on EU issues, and it is immensly important that we retain Riksdagen's responsibility and do not shift issues from there to more or less permanent referenda. It is my belief that this would be unfortunate for the EU issue, and it would also be unfortunate for the trust placed with Riksdagen", he said to Ekot/Sveriges Radio.