Q&A: The Lisbon Treaty

The Lisbon Treaty could finally come into effect in 2009, eight years after European leaders launched a process to make the EU "more democratic, more transparent and more efficient".

Like the European constitution before it, the treaty is often described as an attempt to streamline EU institutions to make the enlarged bloc of 27 states function better. But opponents see it as part of a federalist agenda that threatens national sovereignty.

The constitution was thrown out by French and Dutch voters in 2005. The Lisbon Treaty, too, was rejected by Irish voters in 2008. However, Ireland is planning a new referendum in 2009.

Under EU rules, the treaty cannot enter into force if any of the 27 member states fails to ratify it.

Can the EU still complete ratification?

Yes, if Irish voters give it their backing in the referendum planned for later this year.

LISBON TREATY PROGRESS Approved by parliament: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, The Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, UK Defeated by referendum: Irish Republic Challenges: Legal objections delaying ratification in Germany, Polish president also delaying ratification, Czech president yet to sign treaty

If they reject it a second time, the treaty could be scuppered.

The Irish government agreed in December 2008 to hold the new vote by November 2009, in return for a set of EU "legal guarantees" aimed at addressing various concerns raised by voters. The EU pledges not to impose rules on Ireland concerning taxation, "family" issues - such as abortion, euthanasia and gay marriage - and the traditional Irish state neutrality.

Announcing the new Lisbon deal, French President Nicolas Sarkozy also said that under Lisbon "every member state will have a commissioner" - another concession to Ireland. The original plan was to have fewer commissioners than member states, from 2014 onwards.

The Irish "protocol" will be bolted onto an EU accession treaty - probably the one for Croatia when it joins the European Union. Mr Sarkozy said that would happen "in 2010 or 2011".

Have all other EU members ratified the treaty?

No. The Czech Republic, Germany and Poland have yet to do so.

The Czech lower house approved the treaty on 18 February and the upper house (Senate) did so on 6 May. But Czech President Vaclav Klaus, a Eurosceptic, is against the treaty and has not yet signed it.

Poland's President Lech Kaczynski has refused to sign the treaty for the time being, calling it "pointless". He says he is waiting for the Irish question to be resolved.

In Germany, despite parliamentary approval, the constitutional court has suspended ratification. The judges ruled that Lisbon was compatible with the German constitution, but they demanded extra parliamentary safeguards, to ensure that German MPs participated fully in EU legislation.

Was Ireland the only country to hold a referendum?

Yes. Most EU leaders argued that Lisbon merely amended earlier treaties, and that there was therefore no need for a referendum.

That position is rejected by the Irish No camp and the opposition Conservative Party in Britain, as well as by many Eurosceptics across the EU.

Ireland was obliged to hold a referendum because of an Irish Supreme Court ruling in 1987, saying that any major amendment to an EU treaty entails an amendment to the Irish constitution.

How similar is Lisbon to the draft constitution?

It contains many of the changes the constitution attempted to introduce, for example:

• A politician chosen to be president of the European Council for two-and-a-half years, replacing the current system where countries take turns at being president for six months.
• A new post combining the jobs of the existing foreign affairs supremo, Javier Solana, and the external affairs commissioner, Benita Ferrero-Waldner, to give the EU more clout on the world stage.
• A smaller European Commission, with fewer commissioners than there are member states, from 2014.
• A redistribution of voting weights between the member states, phased in between 2014 and 2017 - qualified majority voting based on a "double majority" of 55% of member states, accounting for 65% of the EU's population.
• New powers for the European Commission, European Parliament and European Court of Justice, for example in the field of justice and home affairs.
• Removal of national vetoes in a number of areas.

Most European leaders acknowledge that the treaty preserves the main substance of the constitution.

Reform Treaty in detail

If it contains the same substance, why is the Lisbon Treaty not a constitution?

The constitution attempted to replace all earlier EU treaties and start afresh, whereas the new treaty amends the Treaty on the European Union (Maastricht) and the Treaty Establishing the European Community (Rome).

It also drops all reference to the symbols of the EU - the flag, the anthem and the motto - though these will continue to exist.

How long did it take to agree the treaty?

A declaration issued at the EU's Laeken summit in 2001, called for a Convention on the future of Europe to look into the simplification and reorganisation of the EU treaties, and raised the question whether the end result should be a constitution.

The Convention began work in February 2002 and a constitution was signed in Rome two-and-a-half years later, in October 2004. But that text became obsolete when it was rejected by French and Dutch voters in 2005.

Work began in earnest on a replacement treaty during the German EU presidency, in the first half of 2007, and agreement on the main points of the new treaty was reached at a summit in June that year.

Negotiations continued behind the scenes over the following months, until a final draft was agreed by the leaders of the 27 member states in October 2007.

Why was the constitution dropped?

France and the Netherlands said they would be unable to adopt the constitutional treaty without significant changes, following the 2005 referendums.

The UK also pressed hard for a modest "amending treaty", which could be ratified by means of a parliamentary vote, like earlier EU treaties.

Does the Charter of Fundamental Rights feature in the new treaty?

No. There is a reference to it, making it legally binding, but the full text does not appear, even in an annex.

The UK has secured a written guarantee that the charter cannot be used by the European Court to alter British labour law, or other laws that deal with social rights. However, experts are divided on how effective this will be.

Q&A: Charter of Fundamental Rights

Are any countries seeking opt-outs?

Ireland and the UK currently have an opt-out from European policies concerning asylum, visas and immigration. Under the new treaty they will have the right to opt in or out of any policies in the entire field of justice and home affairs.

Poland is also due to sign up to the guarantees on the Charter of Fundamental Rights negotiated by the UK. During the treaty negotiations, Polish leaders voiced concern that the charter could contradict Polish law in moral and family matters.

Denmark will continue with its existing opt-out from justice and home affairs, but will gain the right under the new treaty to opt for the pick-and-choose system.

When will the new treaty kick in?

The pre-referendum plan is in disarray now. Originally, the treaty was supposed to come into force in January 2009.

The schedule - which may well change - currently looks like this:

• The High Representative on foreign affairs will not start work until the treaty has been ratified. The new president of the European Council could also start work at that point.

• The European elections in June 2009 will be held under the existing Nice Treaty. That means there will be 736 seats in the European Parliament - down from the current 785. Under the Lisbon plan, the number will be fixed at 751.

• Although a new European Commission will be chosen in October 2009, its size will not be slimmed down until 2014.

• Some extensions of qualified majority voting in the European Council are already in place, such as the appointment of the new commission president and the High Representative for Common Foreign and Security Policy - but plans to redistribute voting weights have been delayed until after 2014.

It could be at least 10 years before the process is complete.