Commission President Announces Support For EU Treaty Change

In one of her final remarks as part of her state of the European Union speech, Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announces her support for a European Convention. This is the method by which changes to the EU's treaties - the organisation's foundational documents - are made.

• Treaty changes/new treaties have major impacts on the functioning and role of the EU. Treaty changes talked of in 2022 in terms of doing away with unanimity principle on issues of foreign policy. Would allow implementation of sanctions without approval of all member state govt's.
• Commission alone cannot call a convention, but now joins the parliament in supporting the move to change EU treaties.
• VdL's call marks a major shift from recent years, where the Parliament has been a lone voice in calling for change.
• Remains a major challenge, getting unanimous approval from all member states on legally binding alterations to laws that replace the functions held by national gov'ts is difficult at times of peace/growth, let alone during a war in the east of Europe and during a time of economic concern.