FISCAL COMPACT : EYEBROWS RAISED OVER EXEC'S RIGHT TO DRAG FAULTY STATES TO COURT.

• Position: European Union. European Commission - Brief article

To give the International agreement on a reinforced economic union' more teeth, the latest draft prepared by European Council President Herman Van Rompuy foresees that the Commission would be allowed to drag participating countries breaching the excessive deficit rules to court. This expanded role for the EU executive departs "significantly" from the agreement hammered out between EU leaders in December 2011, thus creating a political and legal haze. Member state, Commission and Parliament representatives were still attempting to resolve the problem as Europolitics went to press.

"The European Commission may, on behalf of contracting parties, bring an action for an alleged infringement [of any fiscal compact rule] before the Court of Justice of the European Union," reads the text. This goes well beyond what was foreseen in the previous draft, which relied on peer pressure amongst member states with regard to putting in place a debt brake' at national level. "If we...