EU constitution: ‘Treaty of Prodi’?

Europe’s long-awaited constitution can be named after Romano Prodi for all the Irish EU Presidency cares, Bertie Ahern said on Friday.

Wrapping up a Brussels summit long on pre-cooked announcements – including reheated constitution talks – the Irish leader told journalists that he did not care what a new EU agreement was called.

Previous European deals have been named for the city hosting or the capital presiding over negotiations, thus Europe’s founding document was the ‘Treaty of Rome’.

And the existing text to be replaced by a new constitution is the ‘Treaty of Nice”, the work of the 2000 French EU presidency.

The last EU presidency Italy was hoping that a blueprint for an enlarged Europe could be a new ‘Treaty of Rome’ - a symbolic document for a new EU

But Italian leader Silvio Berlusconi's hopes were dashed when December 2003 talks crashed amid acrimony and recriminations.

Ahern has now proclaimed “we’ll finish it”, but when asked if the constitution would be named for Dublin, or even Brussels, the Irish PM claimed not to give a damn.

“I don’t care what it is called,” he said.

“Once it is finished it can be called the Prodi treaty as far as I am concerned.”

The European Commission president was quick to react to the offer.

“Why not?,” he said.

Prodi - who returns to Italian politics in November -  has never been backward about putting himself forward as the EU personified.

The Brussels chief was once asked by Europe's constitutional draftsman, Valery Giscard D'Estaing, the ideal number of commissioners in an enlarged EU.

"Just one," he retorted.

"Me."

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