EU Review & Call to Prayer (EURCP)

EU Review & Call to Prayer (EURCP) – New E. Commission

(By Praise & Prayer Ministries International http://www.EUPrayer.com)

The Word

1 Timothy 2: 1,2 "Therefore I exhort first of all that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks be made for all men, for kings and all who are in authority, that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and reverence." [Your prayers implement God’s Word]

John 15: 5 “I am the vine, you are the branches. He who ABIDES in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing. 7. If you ABIDE in Me, and My Words ABIDE in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you”

2Chronicles 7:14 “if My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.”

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15 August 2004, EUReview & Call to Prayer Ministries – Hugh E. and Norma Jenson Davis

Web page http://www.euprayer.com/ Other language EU News http://www.euractiv.com/ [fr][de]

NEWS ITEMS [Selected portions of articles. Full article links identified]

1.EU faces immigration 'time-bomb'

2. Former EU Ombudsman recommends Constitution referendum

3. Barroso commissioners have first meeting in spirit of "enthusiasm and realism"

4. Member states send heavy hitters to Brussels

5. New Commission meets on Friday [ 20 August 2004]

6. European Commission to be more present in member states

7. UK issues its first cloning license

8. New EU foreign minister to complicate institutional power balance

9. Resistance to canonisation of EU founder

***** THE NEWS *************************************************************

1. EU faces immigration 'time-bomb' - 23.08.2004 - 09:38.

Article >> http://euobserver.com/?aid=17120&rk=1

By Honor Mahony

The rate at which asylum seekers are entering Europe for economic reasons has created 'a time-bomb', the incoming European Commissioner for justice and home affairs has said. Rocco Buttiglione said that member states must work far more closely with each other if the EU is to control the flood of refugees.

Controversy

This camp idea, which has caused a lot of controversy, was recently revived by German interior minister Otto Schily and is expected to be discussed by the big five - Italy, Germany, France, the UK and Spain - in Florence in mid-October. In a separate interview, however, Mr Buttiglione appeared to open the door to economic refugees. Mr Buttiglione starts his high profile job on 1 November.

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PRAY for big five meeting and the defusing of the refugee economic “time bomb”

2 Former EU Ombudsman recommends Constitution referendum - 23.08.2004 - 09:36

Article >> http://euobserver.com/?aid=17118&rk=1

| By Lisbeth Kirk

Former European Ombudsman Jacob Söderman has suggested his country, Finland, should hold a referendum on the European Constitution. According to Mr Söderman, the EU would be similar to a federal state under the new Constitution, even though the final steps are not yet in place. It would not be right to see the Constitution as just another treaty. The Constitution is the basis upon which the EU can organise its own future, he wrote in the Finnish paper Turun Sanomat..

The Constitution will be signed on 29 October at a ceremony in Rome and must be ratified in all 25 EU member states - by referendum or by vote in the national parliaments - before it can enter into force. Altogether, there are ten EU member states intending to hold polls before ratifying the new EU Constitution. These are Denmark, France, Ireland, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Spain, Portugal and the UK.

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PRAY for the broadest participation in the EU Constitution confirmation process.

3. Barroso commissioners have first meeting in spirit of "enthusiasm and realism"

The future European Commission of President Barroso met for a first informal seminar on 20 August. The new commissioners showed eagerness to improve the Commission's image with the European citizens.

Date: 23/08/2004 08:30

http://www.euractiv.com/cgi-bin/cgint.exe/1?204&OIDN=1508119&-tt=

Barroso commissioners have first meeting in spirit of "enthusiasm and realism"

In short:

The future European Commission of President Barroso met for a first informal seminar on 20 August. The new commissioners showed eagerness to improve the Commission's image with the European citizens.

Brief News:

The designated 25 commissioners had a first informal meeting on Friday 20 August. In a press briefing afterwards, the head of the current transition team Mr. Joao Vale de Almeida underlined the new Commission's ambition: "strong team spirit, leadership, vision and collegiality" were the words he used to describe the new team.

New Commission President Barroso wants to start his five-year term with a commission committed to strong ethical and moral foundations. He has drawn up a code of conduct which inter alia clarifies the rules on political activities of the new commissioners and introduces a public register for gifts.

The Barroso commission has opted for continuity as regards the size of cabinets (will be the same as under the Prodi commission) and the position of spokespersons who will continue to work under the President's authority. Spokespersons will not be from the same country as their commissioners. The same rule applies for the Directors-General, but this rule will be applied in a flexible way with a transition period until the summer of 2005.

One of the main innovations of the Barroso commission is the appointment of a Commissioner for Communication (Margot Wallström). She will have the difficult task of improving the Commission's image with the European citizens after the very low participation rates in the European Parliament elections. To get closer to its citizens, the Commission will reinforce its representations in the 25 Member States. Talking to EurActiv, Margot Wallström underlined the need "to listen more closely to the voices from civil society" adding that this meant more than just to the "professional lobbyists". She also said that she wants to professionalise the EU's communication without becoming a PR (public relations) agency.

The 25 commissioners will meet again for a more policy-oriented seminar on 17-18 September. From the end of September, they will all have to appear before the European Parliament to be interviewed in hearings. The new Commission will start its term on the 1 November.

PRAY for a moral foundation, Christian influence and the resulting positive image and operation of the European Commission.

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4. Member states send heavy hitters to Brussels - 04.08.2004 - 09:02

By Honor Mahony Article >> http://euobserver.com/?aid=17043&rk=1

EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS - With the line up for the next commission complete, commentators are optimistic about the effect the many high-ranking politicians will have on the new commission. The latest count shows that over a third of the future commissioners will be ex-prime ministers, foreign ministers and finance ministers. While some have wondered whether this will lead to a further erosion of the technical neutrality of commissioners towards their governments, most commentators are upbeat about the development.

Steven Everts, senior researcher at London-based Centre for European Reform, believes this is a "very positive" step for the commission. He argues that one of the main problems with the current commission is its "weak links with capitals”. Having people, who are close to the administration at home, he says, will mean that the Commission is not so out of step with its member states.

The new European Commission

Austria: Foreign minister Benita Ferrero Waldner

Belgium: Foreign minister Louis Michel

Cyprus Markos Kyprianou, former finance minister

Czech Republic: outgoing prime minister Vladimir Spidla

Denmark: Agriculture minister Mariann Boel Fischer

Estonia: Siim Kallas, former prime minister

Finland: Olli Rehn, former government economics advisor

France: Current regional policy commissioner Jacques Barrot

Germany: Current enlargement commissioner Günter Verheugen

Greece: Current employment commissioner Stavros Dimas

Hungary: Foreign minister Laszlo Kovacs

Ireland: Finance minister Charlie McCreevy

Italy: Europe minister Rocco Buttiglione

Latvia: Parliamentary speaker Ingrida Udre

Lithuania: Dalia Grybauskaite, former finance minister

Luxembourg: Current culture commissioner Viviane Reding

Malta: Joe Borg, former foreign minister

The Netherlands: Neelie Kroes, former transport minister

Poland: Danuta Hübner, former chief negotiator for enlargement

Portugal: President of the European Commission José Manuel Durão Barroso, former Portuguese prime minister

Slovakia: Jan Figel, former chief negotiator for enlargement

Slovenia: Janez Potocnik, former Europe minister

Spain: current monetary affairs commissioner Joaquin Almunia

Sweden: current environment commissioner Margot Wallström

United Kingdom: Peter Mandelson, former trade minister

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PRAY for a strong effective linkage between the nation states and the Commission.

5 New Commission meets on Friday - 19.08.2004 - 09:37.

Article >> http://euobserver.com/?aid=17103&rk=1

By Honor Mahony

EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS - The new European Commission will gather together in Brussels for the first time tomorrow (20 August) for informal talks on all the steps that have to be covered between now and taking up office on 1 November. EU officials say that it is not expected that any substantive policy issues will be discussed but it is rather a get-to-know-you session for the 25 commissioners - several of whom are entirely new to the game. Over the next two month, all commissioners have to undergo a series of administrative, but important, steps before they finally take on their new portfolio.

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6. European Commission to be more present in member states - 20.08.2004 - 20:31

Article >> http://euobserver.com/?aid=17115&rk=1

By Honor Mahony

EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS - In a bid to get citizens more involved with the EU, the European Commission is going to make its presence more felt on the ground in member states.

Outlining the beginnings of the strategy, Joao Vale de Almeida, in charge of the transition of the new commission (20 August) said "We agreed on the principle of reinforcing the representations of the commission in member states' capitals”. The European Commission is represented in each of the 25 member states but they are fairly low key, information-providing offices. But these plans, which will be given a fresh new face in the form of the youthful Swede Margot Wallstöm, are to change the nature of these representations.

Speaking of a "communication gap", Mr Vale de Almeida said that "communication with the European people" is a major priority for the next commission.

Communicating Europe

For her part, Mrs Wallström, for whom this new job as commissioner for communication strategy was created, is realistic about the size of the task before her. "This is not something I can do myself", said the Swede, who is one of the three commissioners staying in Brussels to do another term. Refusing to go into too much detail about her plans saying it was too early; Mrs Wallström did say that the responsibility for communicating Europe had to be better shared between the Commission, member states and political parties.

Incoming president José Manuel Durão Barroso told his new team that they were "at the beginning of an exciting but tough journey”. The 25-strong team spent Friday discussing the internal organisation of the commissioner's cabinets and the next steps until their parliamentary hearings at the end of September / beginning of October before they take up office on 1 November.

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[PRAY Same as item 4}

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7 UK issues its first cloning license - 12.08.2004 - 09:49

Article >> http://euobserver.com/?aid=17075&rk=1

By Honor Mahony

British scientists were on Wednesday (11 August) given the go ahead to perform therapeutic cloning using human embryos. A team of scientists from Newcastle University in England were granted permission by The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority, (HFEA).They are investigating new treatments for conditions including diabetes, Parkinson's and Alzheimer's disease.

The Newcastle experts plan to insert DNA from skin cells into eggs left over from In Vitro Fertilisation (IVF) treatment, which have had their own genetic material removed, reports the Guardian. After some days, these eggs will then produce around a 100 cells from which stem cells can be extracted.

Scientists believe stem cells, which have the potential to form any of the body's specialised tissues, are key to treating conditions such as Alzheimer's. The cloning of human embryos to make babies is forbidden in the UK but this therapeutic cloning, where the embryo is destroyed after the stem cells have been extracted, has been allowed since 2001.

Fierce resistance

However, the decision to grant permission to the scientists - although widely expected - has been met with fierce resistance by pro-life organisations. "It is perverse that, in the current climate of concern for the protection of animals, the HFEA is allowing experimentation on human beings without even a murmur of public opposition," said Julia Millington of the ProLife Party.

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PRAY for the increasing effectiveness of pro-life prayer and influence against human cloning.

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8. New EU foreign minister to complicate institutional power balance

13.08.2004 - 07:11 CET |

By Honor Mahony

Article >> http://euobserver.com/?aid=17083&rk=1

EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS - The new EU foreign minister is set to cause a big power upheaval in the European Commission and beyond when he joins the Brussels executive in two to three years time. The EU's current external representative, the Spaniard Javier Solana, is to join the Commission as vice president and EU foreign minister directly after the European Constitution has been ratified - at the earliest in 2006. "What Mr Solana and I agreed is that we have to prepare the so-called soft landing of the minister of foreign affairs in the commission", said incoming Commission president José Manuel Durão Barroso on Thursday (12 August).

However, this is complicated by the fact that the terms of Mr Solana's future job are so loose. According to the new Constitution, he will be responsible for the Union's common foreign and security policy but will also be responsible for "co-ordinating other aspects of the Union's external action" which means trade, development, enlargement and external relations.

External consistency

These are respectively the portfolios of the UK, Belgium, Finland and Austria. Mr Solana will also join the Commission backed up by a powerful diplomatic service and a direct power line to the member states - making him a very influential figure.

And someone who could outshine the commission president. Laying claim to his turf, Mr Barroso stated "I will chair personally the group of commissioners of external relations so that Mr Solana can already now come to me and discuss the ideas about common foreign and security policy with the President of the Commission".

"We have to work in this transition period", he added. "It would be a complete mistake that the High Representative for external relations sends a signal and the Commission for external relations sends a different signal".

Musical power chairs

Mr Barroso said he had "made it clear" to all members of the European Commission that there would have to be portfolio changes within the five-year term of the commission. When Mr Solana joins the commission, a big portfolio - economic and monetary affairs - will be opened up as the Spanish commissioner Joaquin Almunia will have to leave to make way for his compatriot.

Similarly, Austria's Benita Ferrero Waldner will have half of her portfolio swallowed up as the foreign minister will take on the role of external relations. "We will have to see the exact division of labour" said Mr Barroso who emphasized that Mrs Ferrero Waldner had also been given responsibility for the EU Neighbourhood policy.

And the chair of the European Council?

The situation is still further complicated by the permanent chair of the European Council

also foreseen by the European Constitution.

This person will be responsible for driving forward the work of the EU as well as "the external representation of the Union on issues concerning its common foreign and security policy”. Diplomats in Brussels are already wondering how all three personalities - commission president, foreign minister and council chair - will work together without provoking a permanent power battle between the institutions.

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PRAY for wisdom for the foreign minister and the commissioner for external affairs.

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9. Resistance to canonisation of EU founder - 19.08.2004 - 09:59

Article >> http://euobserver.com/?aid=17108&rk=1

By Honor Mahony

There is strong resistance in the Vatican to the drive for beatification of the founder of the EU, Robert Schuman, the Daily Telegraph reports. The paper reports that investigators under the diocese of Metz have been combing through the life of the French politician to see whether he merits the title of "blessed Robert" - the first step to sainthood. Mr Schuman became known as the founder of the EU after his 'Schuman plan' which was the basis of the European Steel and Coal Community - and which seven years later became the European Community.

However, to date, the Metz investigators have found no evidence of miracles - a prerequisite for beatification.

"We need a miracle and we haven't been able to find one," he said. "All we have is the construction of Europe after the war and Rome does not accept that as a real miracle", said Jean Moes, the leader of the enquiry.

A private group in Metz, the St Benoit institute, is behind the push for the Frenchman's beatification. It is supported in its aim by French President Jacques Chirac, says the Telegraph.

PRAY for Schuman's recognition and honor, but spiritual recognition may not be necessary. Why not the Schuman Center for European Studies in Strasburg, France?

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PPmi (Praise & Prayer Ministries International - Hugh & Norma Jenson Davis) is conducting this multi-denominational ministry under the mission program of the Assemblies of God Western Europe office outside of Brussels, Belgium. The mailing address there is: EMC/EURCP (Gerald Branum.) 45 Chaussee de Waterloo, 1640 Rhode Saint Genese, BELGIUM

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