EU rift over Franco-German plan for two presidents

Plans by France and Germany for the European Union to have a double presidency hit a wall of opposition yesterday at the convention on the future of Europe, despite the backing of Britain.

Ministers from small nations banded together with pro-European MEPs to denounce the ideas, which were agreed by Paris and Berlin last week and which are supported by the five biggest EU states. The Franco-German plans, described by Louis Michel, Belgium's Foreign Minister, as "unacceptable", would create a powerful new president of the Council of Ministers, on which national governments are represented.

As a quid pro quo the European Commission president would be elected by MEPs, enhancing his democratic legitimacy and authority.

Yesterday's debate at the 105-strong convention on the future of Europe was the first test of opinion and Peter Hain, the Welsh Secretary who represents the UK, gave the plan strong backing. He said: "The European Council needs the continuity and strategic drive of a long-term chairman if it is to play its full role in the dynamic of a new, enlarged EU."

But, while the Franco- German plan is now backed by the British, Spanish, Italian, Swedish and Danish governments, opposition is strong within the convention, which is chaired by the former French president Valery Giscard d'Estaing.

Small countries fear that the plans would shift power towards the bigger countries, which tend to dominate the European Council. Gijs De Vries, the Dutch government representative, argued that the new president of the council would neither "be elected by the people nor accountable to any democratic body – neither national parliaments nor the European parliament".

He added: "How would this bring Europe close to our citizens? What Europe does not need at the moment is a new president." His criticisms were echoed by the foreign ministers of Belgium and Slovenia, Mr Michel and Dimitrij Rupel, as well as by Antonio Vitorino, a European commissioner, and Lamberto Dini, a former Italian foreign minister. The convention's vice-president, the former Italian prime minister Giuliano Amato, said the plan "risked making things worse [rather] than better".

The convention is made up of national representatives and parliamentarians and MEPs from the EU states and those planning to join. It has been asked to agree a draft constitution for the EU, which will be sent to heads of government.

The split creates a headache for M. Giscard, who needs to put together a blueprint acceptable both to a majority of his convention and to the leaders of the big governments which will have to approve it.

After yesterday's debate, agreement on the Franco- German plan looked a distant prospect. Andrew Duff, a Liberal Democrat MEP, said the plan was "not a proper compromise" but a "cut-and-paste exercise" that would provoke duplication and rivalry.

Mr Duff is proposing a single presidency to preside over both the European Council and the Commission. That idea, although likely to win some support in the convention, is viewed as overambitious.