Mixed response to outcome of EU summit
Parliament's new president Martin Schulz has urged the EU to find a use for the "billions of euros" in the EU-budget which he says is not taken up by member states.
The MEP said this would make "sense" and is better than "simply returning them to the contributors".
Speaking at Monday's EU summit in Brussels, he welcomed the announcement of a growth initiative but said that part of the "unused" money should be invested in youth employment projects.
At the summit, 25 of the EU's 27 member states agreed to join a fiscal treaty to enforce budget discipline.
The Czech Republic and the UK refused to sign up with British prime minister David Cameron saying his government would act if the treaty threatened the country's interests.
He said he still has "legal concerns" about the use of EU institutions in enforcing the fiscal treaty.
The Czechs cited "constitutional reasons" for their refusal. The goal is much closer coordination of budget policy across the EU to prevent excessive debts accumulating.
Schulz, addressing his first EU summit as president, said, "In the face of pressure from the markets, and when every day seems to bring a dramatic new turn of events, it is sometimes difficult to think beyond immediate solutions."
Saying "history" was being written at the summit, he added, "Europe has a common destiny. We share a responsibility to take courageous steps towards closer integration, to explain difficult decisions to our fellow citizens, and to listen to their concerns.
"It is sometimes suggested that people do not want more Europe. I don't believe that.
"77 per cent of EU citizens are in favour of the closer coordination of economic policies. In their eyes, the EU is not the problem, the EU is the solution. Let us not squander their trust, let us finally start the work of making the financial transaction tax, eurobonds and the European growth initiative a reality."
Further comment came from European Liberal Democrat and Reform Party leader and Liberal Democrat MEP Sir Graham Watson, who said, "Greece must commit to the same kind of painful economic reforms which countries with Liberal-led governments have already introduced, in particular to address the cost of labour in relation to productivity.
"The EU can help with investment to provide job opportunities, but there is no way to avoid or postpone hard choices. If a commissioner is to be tasked with 'taking over' wayward economies this should fall within the remit of commission vice-president Olli Rehn, to ensure consistency in policy."
ECR leader Martin Callanan commented, "There is no doubt that the UK government's position has altered since the December summit when they were insisting the EU institutions could not be used.
"I blame a combination of appeasing Nick Clegg and the practical reality that this pact is actually quite hard to prevent. The UK government would have to ask the European court of justice to rule against itself having a role.
"Any action could easily take two years, we would probably lose and, if the euro collapsed in the meantime, the UK would get the blame."
More reaction came from UKIP's Paul Nuttall, who criticised Cameron's position, saying, "It's particularly ironic when the EU lectures developing countries about the importance of good governance and the rule of law."
Elsewhere, the NGO Social Platform said it opposes the text of the new treaty, saying it has been "hastily negotiated behind closed doors and in violation of all the provisions foreseen under the EU treaties".
A statement said, "Putting forward treaty changes and other economic governance initiatives at such a rapid speed and without ensuring democratic legitimacy, brings with it the dangers of restricting sustainable growth, weakening the cohesiveness of a sustainable European society and eroding democracy.
"We are convinced that the proposal will weaken Europe instead of reinforcing it. The new treaty will undermine the support of the population for European integration, and it will stifle growth and increase unemployment, poverty, exclusion and will widen inequalities."
