EU Treaty

Netherlands upper house approves EU reform treaty

The upper house of the Dutch parliament voted 50-15 Tuesday to approve the EU reform treaty, formally known as the Treaty of Lisbon.

Last month, Netherlands Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende said that he would press on with ratification, even after Irish voters rejected the treaty in a referendum earlier that month. The Dutch parliament's lower house approved the treaty by a vote of 111-39 in June.

Other EU countries have delayed ratifying the treaty until the full effect of the Irish referendum is known. The future of the pact is currently in doubt as it must be approved by all 27 EU states in order to take effect.

EU leaders signed the reform treaty last December, and 14 countries have ratified the document so far. In 2005, a draft European constitution failed when voters in France and the Netherlands rejected the proposal in national referenda. EU leaders are expected to meet in Brussels next week to discuss how to move ahead in light of the Irish vote.

(Published by Jurist - july 9, 2008)