EU Commission does something sensible - aka Stalled ACTA

[Chippiewill]

Acta approval stalled by European commission


http://static.guim.co.uk/sys-images/Media/Columnists/Columnists/2012/2/22/1329927783063/Acta-007.jpg

Approval of the controversial international anti-counterfeiting treaty Acta has been stalled by the European commission, which is to ask Europe's highest court whether implementing it would violate any fundamental EU rights.

The decision comes as the treaty faces growing opposition in parliaments, city streets and the internet, with some countries including Germany, the Netherlands and Poland declaring they would not approve the agreement in its current form – a stance that would make it impossible to ratify, because it requires every European country to sign up and approve it.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2012/feb/22/acta-stalled-european-commission

Of course this wouldn't be a problem if we didn't join the EU in the first place, but at least they finally made a good call. They just need to sort out everything else they screwed up.

Thoughts?

[-:Undertaker:-]

The European Commission is simply doing what it always does with unpopular objectives, it 'drops' them and then brings them back again after the furore has died down.

Unelected, unaccountable, corrupt and yet makes around 70% of our laws - do people think this body is in anyway acceptable? if not, what are they going to do about it?

[dbgtz]

The European Commission is simply doing what it always does with unpopular objectives, it 'drops' them and then brings them back again after the furore has died down.

Unelected, unaccountable, corrupt and yet makes around 70% of our laws - do people think this body is in anyway acceptable? if not, what are they going to do about it?

In all fairness, our government have signed it directly aswell so even if the EU didn't pass the law, it could still affect us.

[Chippiewill]

Actually the signing means nothing as all EU members states have to agree for it to be ratified.


The European Commission is simply doing what it always does with unpopular objectives, it 'drops' them and then brings them back again after the furore has died down.
Well that certainly sounds like how it could go down, the American government is doing that - masquerading a replacement for SOPA as protection against child pornography.

[-:Undertaker:-]

In all fairness, our government have signed it directly aswell so even if the EU didn't pass the law, it could still affect us.

It could, but at least in theory we can remove our government at electon time for its bad decisions - you cannot remove the EU Commission.

[Chippiewill]

you cannot remove the EU Commission.
Does anyone accountable actually choose the Commission?

[-:Undertaker:-]

Does anyone accountable actually choose the Commission?

Well thats not democratic anyway and is also unacceptable, but here to put it simply..


The Commission operates as a cabinet government, with 27 members of the Commission (informally known as "commissioners"[3] ). There is one member per member state, though members are bound to represent the interests of the EU as a whole rather than their home state. One of the 27 is the Commission President (currently José Manuel Durão Barroso) proposed by the European Council and elected by the European Parliament. The Council then appoints the other 26 members of the Commission in agreement with the nominated President, and then the 27 members as a single body are subject to a vote of approval by the European Parliament.[4] The first Barroso Commission took office in late 2004[2] and its successor, under the same President, took office in 2010.

It would be like doing away with General Elections, only voting for Local councillors - and having them appoint (on order of their parties of course) our MPs who would then make up the pan-party government.

[Ajthedragon]

Hopefully it will stop this year's motor cycle legislation too. Doubt it though. :P

[Chippiewill]

It would be like doing away with General Elections, only voting for Local councillors - and having them appoint (on order of their parties of course) our MPs who would then make up the pan-party government.So like the electoral college.. but worse?

I'm surprised this is not a larger issue to be honest as this doesn't actually seem like democracy, it's more like a dictatorship.

[Mathew]

What's the idea behind the masks then? Hide their identity so that we don't know who to throw insults at for making these stupid decisions? :rolleyes:

[Chippiewill]

What's the idea behind the masks then? Hide their identity so that we don't know who to throw insults at for making these stupid decisions? :rolleyes:
Some polishparliamentgroup members were protesting against ACTA recently. I guess the Guardian used it since ACTA has close ties with piracy and Anonymous, I included it because it was pretty funny to me.

[Oleh]

Conspiracy time:

What if, this was their plan all along? They knowingly introduced a controversial treaty and then come with the right hook out of no where and surprise us by doing something good, whilst at the same time doing something equally as unpopular without us even knowing about it?

Just my theory.


But yeah, it is good that they stalled it, hopefully it disappears for good.