EU ceremony which PROVES Brussels is hell-bent on building a super-state

Ursula von der Leyen, the European Commission’s president, and her band of 26 deputies were shipped from the EU executive’s Brussels-based headquarters 132 miles to Luxembourg to give a “solemn undertaking”. While not as glamorous as the US President’s “oath of office”, which is played out in front of thousands of onlookers gathering around Washington DC’s Capitol building, the EU have made an effort to introduce similar pomp and pageantry. In front of an army of European judges, the Commission chief is first up to deliver her promise that she will only service the EU – not its member states – during her five-year term as president.

In her native German by abandoning the concept of nation states, Mrs von der Leyen proudly proclaimed: “Having been appointed as a member of the European Commission by the European Council, following the vote of consent by the European Parliament, I solemnly undertake:

“To respect the treaties and the charter of fundamental rights of the European Union in the fulfilment of all my duties.

“To be completely independent in carrying out my responsibilities, in the general interest of the EU.

“In the performance of my tasks, neither to seek nor take instructions from any government or from any other institution, body, office or entity.

“To refrain from any action incompatible with my duties or the performance of my tasks.

“I formally note the obligation laid down under the treaty on the functioning of the European Union, by virtue of which each member state is to respect this principle and is not to seek to influence members of the Commission in the performance of tasks.

“I further undertake to respect, both during and after my term of office, the obligations arising therefrom, and in particular the duty to behave with integrity and discretion, as regards the acceptance, after I have ceased to hold office, of certain appointments or benefits.”

The non-binding oath is sealed with a signature on a large piece of European parchment, a surefire way to cement your authority and commitment to the bloc.

The EU’s tradition stretches back a mere 62 years, when German Walter Hallstein, the president of the first commission of the European Economic Community, gathered in Brussels for their first ever meeting.

On January 16, 1958, in a smoke-filled room, Mr Hallstein and his commission took the same public “solemn undertaking” as stated by the Treaty of Rome.

Under Mr Hallstein, a supporter of a federal Europe, the bloc started to consolidate European laws and have an impact on national legislation.

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source: express.co.uk