Spanish parliament overwhelmingly approves Lisbon Treaty (Roundup)

Jun 26, 2008, 11:45 GMT

Madrid - The Spanish parliament Thursday approved the European Union's Lisbon Treaty with an overwhelming majority.

A total of 322 legislators of the lower house voted in favour of a law authorizing the ratification of the treaty.

The governing Socialists and opposition conservatives were unanimous in backing the treaty. Six regionalist and far-left MPs from smaller parties voted against, while two legislators abstained.

The ratification still needs to be approved by the upper house or senate, which was expected to give it the green light before the initially planned time in October.

The vote was preceded by a two-hour parliamentary debate, during which Foreign Minister Miguel Angel Moratinos stressed Spain's 'firm engagement' with a 'politically ambitious and efficient' EU.

Spaniards wanted more than just an economic union, which should be able to deal with challenges such as immigration, climate change or energy supplies, the minister said.

Spain was the first country to begin approving the treaty after it was rejected in an Irish referendum on June 12. Spain has defended the continuation of the ratification process despite the crisis created by the Irish no-vote.

The Lisbon Treaty, which is designed to improve the EU's decision- making process, needs to be ratified by all of the bloc's 27 member states. The parliaments of 19 countries, including Spain, have endorsed it.