THE EU was said to be on the brink of an abyss today, but the censure motion by Euro MPs threatening to topple topple all 20 of its Commissioners in a row over fraud and waste was heading for a fudge compromise likely to save most, if not all, of their skins.

Nonetheless, this turmoil is welcome and refreshing.

Even the so-called nuclear alternative of the whole Commission being axed or resigning in bitter pique at the MEPs' action would be, too, despite throwing the EU "leadership" into chaos.

That is because it would give a much-needed injection of people power and accountability into the running of the EU.

For what the EU symbolises for a great many ordinary people is institutionalised extravagance and incompetence, warped by widespread corruption, run by an unelected executive, stuffed with faceless bureaucrats, backed up by a toothless talking-shop parliament. But with this departure, the MEPs - angered as much by cover-up efforts as by the mismanagement, fraud, cronyism and nepotism they say is at work within the Commission structure - have at last truly bared their teeth and reminded the Commission they cannot do as they please.

And as a development for greater democracy within the EU, it deserves to be reinforced by the taking of a scalp or two by the Parliament.

But, more than this, it ought to be the launch-pad for constitutional change within the Union.

For fudgy outcome or not, MEPs have strongly signalled the need for the change of the Commission structure whose immensely-powerful, highly-paid members are the unelected nominees of their home governments and, so, are themselves inherent symbols of cronyism.

They should be elected.

And the legislative and executive powers of the EU should be ultimately controlled by its Parliament rather than being given over in such large degree to 20 Commissioners picked not by the people, but by a process of political favour.

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.