THE WEEK THAT WAS... (June 3, 2013)

Whilst Chancellor Angela Merkel let us know in the German weekly Der Spiegel that she sees ‘no need in the next few years to give up more powers to the Commission in Brussels’, UK foreign secretary William Hague has argued that EU countries should be given a new "red card" system to enable them to veto unwelcome EU legislation. He said the move would boost the democratic accountability of national parliaments within the bloc. Hague explained that the proposal would be an extension of a "yellow card" system already in place where parliaments can demand that a proposed law is reconsidered by the European Commission. The red card would go further by blocking legislation altogether and allowing national parliaments to block unwanted EU law would bring back democratic accountability over EU decisions.

A good idea, according to the comments in the media. However Hague's suggestion of giving national parliaments the ability to block commission proposals deals primarily with future harmful regulation, rather than tackling the existing stock of unwelcome legislation.

At the same time the Commission announced that it will take the UK to the European Court of Justice over its ‘right to reside’ test applied to EU migrants trying to access certain welfare benefits. The Commission says this test is illegal under EU law as British citizens pass it automatically. The Brits are not amused about this. The Telegraph wrote: ‘if the Commission wants to push the UK out of the EU, this is definitely the way to go’ and warned that the Commission risks ‘undermining any public confidence in the idea of free movement in the EU’. Think Tank Open Europe critisised the Commission’s decision as ‘a spectacular own goal’…