Support waning for Blair's EU bid
Updated on 30 October 2009
Tony Blair's chances of being the first EU president are fading as key Europeans leaders, with the exception of Gordon Brown, fail to back him. Carl Dinnen reports.
European Union leaders have struck a deal which should mean that the Lisbon reform treaty is finally able to come into force. The last major hurdle, getting the Czech president on board, was achieved last night.
But, though the deal will clear the way for the appointment of a new President of the European Council, Tony Blair's chances of being parachuted into the role are waning.
With European leaders meeting in Brussels there's a distinct lack of big names other than Gordon Brown coming out in his support, and some who were thought to be backers, are now backing out. His candidacy failed to secure the blessing of European socialists, the Labour Party's allies.
Prime Minister Gordon Brown yesterday underlined his support for Mr Blair, saying he would make an "excellent candidate", but last night Downing Street indicated that defeat was a clear possibility.
Leaders of the 27-country bloc cheered and applauded when they agreed on the wording of a deal to persuade Czech President Vaclav Klaus to ratify the Lisbon treaty which would reform the EU's top institutions, officials said.
They accepted his demand for an opt-out from a charter on human rights which is attached to the treaty, saying this would shield the Czech Republic from property claims by ethnic Germans expelled after World War Two.
"The road to ratification now stands open," Swedish Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt, whose country holds the EU presidency and has been negotiating with the Czech government, told a news conference.
The treaty needs the backing of all 27 member states to go into force. All have ratified it except the Czech Republic.
Foreign Secretary David Milliband explained why Tony Blair would make a good president of a new EU council. "We think that it's very important that the president of the Council is able to be a persuasive advocate on the global stage for the common policies that are agreed for the countries of the European Union and their people," he said.
But Luxembourg Foreign Minister Jean Asselborne told the socialist parties' meeting: "There is a link, and there will remain a link for the coming generation between Iraq, Bush and Tony Blair, so its not easy, not easy."
After the meeting the leader of the European parliamentary group of Socialists (PES), Poul Rasumussen, also failed to endorse Blair when asked a direct question about his candidature.
"There are several names on the two posts. It's simply too early to go into that puzzle," said Rasmussen. Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero suggested the socialists might instead seek the post of high representative for foreign affairs.
The post is now more likely to go to a centre-right candidate. No front-runner has emerged but possible contenders include Dutch Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende and former Finnish Prime Minister Paavo Lipponen.
Former Europe minister Denis MacShane told Channel 4 News at Noon that it was unlikely that leaders would declare their support for a candidate at "this stage in the game."
"Mrs Merkel has not indicated which way she wants to go, and frankly until the German lady sings no one will know," he said.
"Europe will discuss over the next couple of weeks, three weeks, does it want a big person - whatever everyone thinks about Tony Blair he is a man who can walk in to see President Obama, he can walk in to see the presidents of China and India, help to put Europe on the world stage and do the communication thing - or does Europe play safe.
"It's not, certainly never was, in the bag for Tony Blair.
"It's very interesting that the two big names that a lot of people are talking about happen to be British. I think we can take a modest pride in that."
Climate deadlock
With the Czechs now likely to ratify the Lisbon treaty, attention in Brussels today has shifted to climate change.
Gordon Brown and the Danish Prime Minister are attempting to break a deadlock with poorer Eastern European states over how much money the EU contributes to the fight against climate change.
Mr Brown has called for the bloc to put up 100bn Euros a year until 2020 but his proposal has met resistance from nine eastern European countries who say they cannot afford it.
Science correspondent Julian Rush said: "There are three things which Gordon Brown and the Danish prime minster are trying to achieve and they're reasonably confident that they will get them but the talks are still going on.
"The first is that €100bn a year by 2020 is the amount of money that the European Union will put on the table at the Copenhagen negotiations. That is to go from developing countries, if you like, from rich countries to poor countries, to help them adapt to climate change to mitigate the effects of climate change and adopt new carbon technologies.
"Secondly they want to get through that between €22bn and €50bn a year of that comes from government money - from public sector funds and not from private sector or from carbon markets.
"And thirdly they are trying to push through the idea of getting some money on the table very quickly - some €5bn to €7bn a year starting next year once a Copenhagen deal is agreed at the end of this year. That's their hope.
"The conditions on this are that first of all other countries, partially rich countries like America, stump up cash as well and secondly that developing countries do actually agree to have some sort of control, some sort of constraint on their carbon emissions with negotiate in Copenhagen.
"This morning the Prime Minister Gordon Brown is reasonably confident that he can achieve that.
"The opponents really are mainly the eastern European countries led by the Polls. Quite simply they argue, 'We are poor countries too we can't afford to pay the sorts of money you're talking about.'
"But the British this morning were reasonably confident that they think they can overcome those Polish objections.
"Why does it matter? Well it matters because Europe puts itself in the place of being the moral leader on climate change - it's going in to negotiations in Copenhagen on climate change saying, 'We are the part of the world that is really, really doing something about climate change.'
"And since the negotiations are about as much about money as they are about getting emission reductions down if the Europeans can't agree about money well then it's whole moral position is completely undermined."
