Does the European Union have the resources to match its ambitions?

Calls to reform the institutions to make the EU more efficient, more democratic and better adapted to contemporary challenges are growing.

Transcript

00:00 15 years have passed since the last update of a treaty of the European Union.

00:07 Entering into force in 2009, the Treaty of Lisbon clarified the division of powers between the EU and member states.

00:14 Since then, some have called for treaty changes in anticipation of the bloc's enlargement.

00:19 The EU needs to be made future-proof. It has to become more agile, it has to have more capacity to act,

00:26 in particular if the EU is going to grow.

00:30 Institutional reforms had also aimed to build on the EU's capacity to respond to contemporary challenges.

00:39 We are dealing with a different international context, and Europe needs to raise its capacity to defend itself, to support Ukraine.

00:49 So the European Parliament, which gave the green light at the end of November to proposals for reforming the treaties of the Union,

00:56 proposed to create a defence union with military capabilities.

01:00 Proponents of reform argued that defence of the rule of law and democratic legitimacy of the EU could also be strengthened.

01:08 One of the major weaknesses of the European Union has been over the past years,

01:14 that it hasn't been able to protect the rule of law in all member states.

01:18 The expert recommends increasing budgetary conditions and improving Article 7 of the Treaty of the European Union,

01:25 which allows the suspension of a member state's voting rights in the Council in the event of non-compliance with its fundamental values.

01:32 Triggered against Poland and Hungary, Article 7 never succeeded and has not yet achieved its goal.

01:38 Digital and energy transitions, the fight against climate change and health crises,

01:43 are all global challenges that require increased EU capacity for action, according to experts.

01:49 Europe needs to have a key role in improving global governance when dealing with climate change.

01:56 When it comes to energy, experts and MEPs propose the creation of an integrated European Energy Union

02:02 to guarantee a stable, affordable and sustainable energy supply for Europeans.

02:08 There are also calls for increased EU competence to ensure fair and impartial access to healthcare within the EU

02:15 or to conduct group procurement of vaccines.

02:19 However, opponents of these proposed reforms believe that these powers belong to member states

02:23 and many are calling for more national sovereignty.

02:26 [BLANK_AUDIO]