Press Release: The treaty of Nice enters into force: an essential building block to enlarge the European Union

On 1 February 2003, the Treaty of Nice entered into force. The Treaty makes adaptations to the European institutions, which are necessary for enlargement. The Treaty will also facilitate decision-making in the Council of Ministers by changing the decision rule from unanimity to qualified majority in a number of policy fields. It foresees a major reform of the Union's judicial system in order to tackle the case overload in the Court of Justice. Finally, it improves the procedure to detect and address a serious breach of fundamental rights by a Member State.

http://europa.eu/rapid/pressReleasesAction.do?reference=MEMO/03/23&format=HTML&rapid=0&language=EN&guiLanguage=en http://europa.eu/rapid/pressReleasesAction.do?reference=MEMO/03/23&format=HTML&rapid=0&language=EN&guiLanguage=en

http://ec.europa.eu/comm/nice_treaty/index_en.htm http://ec.europa.eu/comm/nice_treaty/index_en.htm

---