The Nice Treaty will make the European Commission a de facto "European government" by changing the rules for appointment of commissioners, a Danish MEP has claimed.
Mr Jens-Peter Bonde described the treaty proposal as revolutionary, given that the Commission would be appointed by majority vote from 2005, rather than the current system in which member-states choose their commissioners, who then function as representatives on an "administrative board".
In theory, he said, the change meant that the seven smallest states could have all their proposed commissioners voted down by the eight larger countries. But the revised system had been "completely hidden" during all press briefings on the Nice Summit.
"This is a profound change which will mean we have a real European government in Brussels, but it is not for discussion, apparently," he said.
However, a spokesman for the Minister for Foreign Affairs last night rejected Mr Bonde's comments, saying he ignored "explicitly written" guarantees in the treaty that member-states' nominations would be respected.
Mr Bonde, in Dublin for the publication of his book Nice Treaty Explained, also claimed Nice was about "deeping rather than widening" the EU. "There is no enlargement in this treaty and the new system of voting will happen whether the EU is enlarged or not."
He shared a platform yesterday with three Irish MEPs who advocate a No vote on the treaty: the Greens' Ms Patricia McKenna and Ms Nuala Ahern; and the Independent, Ms Dana Rosemary Scallon.
Ms McKenna said the book "clearly shows that if we ratify the Nice Treaty, we are putting ourselves under an obligation to take the next steps outlined in the declaration, namely an EU constitution and a new treaty in 2004.
"The Government and the main establishment parties are blindfolding the public by omitting this very important fact."
Ms Scallon said she was not a Eurosceptic, "but I do believe that the sovereignty of our country is under threat". Either way, there was no excuse for the Government's "fast-tracking" of the treaty vote, she added. "The Finnish government will take a full year to debate this, for example."
She also criticised the charter of fundamental rights which is separate from but endorsed by the treaty. She had come under strong pressure from her European Parliament grouping to support the charter, she said.
