The European summit of Nice (December 2000) will be a milestone in European construction, since the outcome of the Intergovernmental Conference (IGC) will be ratified by Heads of State and of government of the European Union. Since February, institutional questions (size and composition of the European Commission, weighting of votes in the Council, extended application of qualified majority voting within the Council, application of reinforced co-operation...) have been tackled in the IGC in the light of the soon-to-be enlarged Union.

To follow the developments of this crucial IGC, the Observatoire has put forward a targeted information letter and website. The aim is to analyse the Union's negotiations on institutional reform, and the project for the Charter of Fundamental Rights, in order to understand the principal stakes of the game. The site includes references to official documents that are the basis of the current negotiations, as well as information concerning positions taken by the key players involved (trade union organisations, NGOs, think-tanks, etc.). OSE documents aim to clarify the essence of the inter-related debates.