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The Seventh Congress
for Democracy
was held on
Friday 1 March 2002
at Church House,
Dean's Yard, Westminster
(Full report
here)
The Rt Hon David
Heathcoat-Amory MP
Chairman, European Research Group and one of two UK representatives
on the Convention on the Future of Europe - speaking following the
opening session of the Convention. (Full text here)
The Seventh Congress for
Democracy passed the following resolution:
The Future Role of the Congress for
Democracy
The Seventh Congress for
Democracy confirms the motion* passed at its Fifth Congress and further
resolves:
-
that, as well as continuing to oppose
the abolition of the pound, the Congress for Democracy will in
future also consider and, where appropriate, take a view on other EU
developments, particularly as they affect Britain’s constitutional
and legal system;
-
that the Congress will, in particular,
consider matters arising from the Inter-Governmental Conferences and
the Convention on the Future of Europe.
____________________________________
*Congress
therefore declares that:
- The electorate must agree by
referendum any further transfer of power to the EU.
- The Common Law of England, Wales and
Northern Ireland, the ancient legal system of Scotland, trial by
jury and habeas corpus are inviolate, and must not be weakened by
alien European law and any attempt to do so must be resisted.
- The EU Charter of Fundamental Rights,
or any "European Constitution", will transfer too much
power from national parliaments to unaccountable European judges. A
European Constitution is unthinkable and the Charter of Fundamental
Rights is unacceptable, even in declaratory form.
- National parliaments must be the
custodians of their peoples' constitutions, taxation, defence,
foreign affairs, jurisprudence, police and electoral policy.
- This will involve the retrieval of
powers already granted to the European Union and the rejection of
the legal process by which powers are expanded by the European
federal institutions and then retained forever.
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