In a short comment to the press in the ministerial lounge at Luqa airport, the prime minister said that the summit will hopefully conclude talks which would mean that the Union has made the historic leap of adopting its first Constitution.
Shortly after arriving in Brussels, Dr Gonzi was expected to meet his counterparts in the European Popular Parties (EPP), to which the Nationalist Party is affiliated.
The meeting is expected to address the EPP’s position over the issues that will be raised in discussions on the Constitution. There will also be talks regarding the prospective candidate for the presidency of the European Parliament. The EPP is expected to exert pressure for the president to be elected from its ranks.
An important part of the talks with the EPP, he said, will also include a discussion of the formation of the new committees within the EP and their respective presidencies.
Dr Gonzi said that he will be lobbying to make the Maltese issues present within all the committees even though our representatives cannot be physically present in all of them, he said.
Asked by The Malta Independent whether the PN and MLP had held talks to coordinate the Maltese participation in EP committees so as not to have two members on the same committee, Dr Gonzi said that talks on this issue have not been held yet, but he expected them to take place in the days to come, on his return from Brussels.
Referring to Irish Prime Minister Bertie Ahern – Ireland is currently holding the rotating presidency of the European Union – Dr Gonzi said that the Irish president has done a considerable amount of work to bring some sort of convergence on the issues that have been contended in the discussions over the constitution. There seems to have been a measure of success, he said, not specifying exactly the exact issues to which he was referring.
Sources say that the government has its eyes placed on the sixth seat issue and the mention of Christianity in the Constitution, a position that is opposed by a majority of EU countries.
The prime minister was accompanied by Foreign Minister John Dalli and Parliamentary Secretary Michael Frendo to the private jet that was waiting just outside the lounge. The renting of the jet for a similar trip some time ago was the centre of a controversy after the Opposition raised questions in parliament over the unnecessary costs of such an exercise.
Opposition Leader Dr Alfred Sant left yesterday morning for a meeting with the PES in which there will be an analysis of the EP election results and a discussion over the EU Constitution. As with the EPP, the PES will discuss its own nomination of the next EP president as well as the socialists’ work programme for the next five years.