Enlargement: EU mulls two-tier membership for new entrants

Brussels – A “trial period” for new member states and a possible ouster from the club. European enlargement is opening up to new mechanisms to make the entry of non-EU countries more sustainable. According to the Mattinale Europeo, the progress report on the candidate countries, to be presented by the EU Commission on November 4, will propose new rules for accession. The countries closest to accession are Moldova and Ukraine, which could begin the opening of the 30 negotiation chapters with the EU in the coming months. 

Two-tier membership

The whole plan is not yet clear, but what has emerged so far suggests the introduction of an integration period. Within this timeframe, new members would have to renounce their veto rights and would be expelled from the 12-star community for backtracking on core values.

Its introduction would represent a new development that advances the idea of a sort of classification among Member States. The hierarchy would be a novelty for a system that has always guaranteed equal rights to all its participants. The second aspect—the possibility of ouster in the event of backsliding on democratic principles—is also a critical point. Such a measure would serve to safeguard the Union against possible anti-community drift, which is impossible to counteract since the infrastructure is decided by unanimity. The Commission intends to prevent a single bad apple from blocking the entire decision-making process.

Even countries already within the Union can backslide towards less democratic pasts. The scenario could become increasingly likely as the European Union intends to expand to over 30 members in the coming years. With this in mind, in her speech to the Strasbourg Parliament last week, Enlargement Commissioner Martha Kos spoke of “a parallel path between reforms and enlargement.” On the same wavelength was EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, who, on November 4, will make public a document on the revision of the EU’s internal operating rules in view of enlargement. 

The ‘passerelle clause’

However, the diktat the executive body will follow is not to touch the Treaties, trying to soften the unanimity requirements by exploiting loopholes and derogations of European law. One possibility, as indicated by Kos, is activating the “passerelle clause.” 

The rule is present in Article 48 of the Treaty on the European Union (TEU). Paragraph 7 enables the Council to adopt a qualified majority voting structure on one or more specific topics, provided that there is no opposition by the European Parliament and all national parliaments. The rule gives particular importance to national parliaments, which have six months to express any opposition. In the absence of such opposition, the Council may confirm the decision and deliberate on a specific matter without the requirement of unanimity. The Council may decide by a qualified majority.

The application of this rule would not entail an amendment to the Treaty and would therefore be easier to accomplish. At the same time, however, an absolute majority would be required to implement Article 48. The plan resembles that for a “pragmatic federalism” referred to by Mario Draghi in the speech for the Princess of Asturias Awards. The topic remains on the table.  On November 4, enlargement will be discussed, and there will also be signals on whether the EU will become more efficient.