Mes, the German Court rejects the appeal on the treaty: green light for ratification

BRUSSELS. The Federal Constitutional Court has declared inadmissible the constitutionality appeal raised against the approval of the Agreement of 27 January 2021 amending the Treaty establishing the European Stability Mechanism, the Save-State Fund. Now the way is paving for Germany to ratify the reform of the ESM treaty.

Among the 19 member states of the Eurozone, Italy is still missing, having undertaken to ratify the new treaty with the previous government. Recently the Economy Minister, Giancarlo Giorgetti, reaffirmed Italy’s commitment but stated that he wanted to wait for the German verdict before proceeding.

In the previous legislature FdI and Lega had spoken out against the reform and it will be interesting to see if the current majority proceeds with the ratification.

The appeal had been presented by seven deputies of the Liberal Democratic Party (FDP) in the Bundestag. “The complainants – writes the Court – argue that a two-thirds majority was necessary because the urgent procedure established by the Agreement amending the ESM Treaty in the context of common support would involve a transfer of sovereign powers and because the modification involves a de facto modification of the regulatory framework of the European Union in a structurally significant way’.

But according to the Court, «the constitutional complaint», reads a note, «is inadmissible, as the appellants have not sufficiently demonstrated and substantiated the possibility that such acts violate their right to democratic self-determination. They have failed to demonstrate that one of the amending agreements could lead to a transfer of sovereign powers to the ESM or the European Union or that a (de facto) change to the framework of the EU integration agenda which could violate their rights ».