Brussels, 19/05/2015 (Agence Europe) - As part of its Better Regulation programme (see other article), the European Commission adopted a communication on Tuesday 19 May presenting a proposal for a new inter-institutional agreement on improving laws-making.
This text seeks to complement the existing agreements between the three institutions in relation to joint working methods. The proposal sets out a vision of how the Commission, Parliament and Council will work together to use best practice in the adoption of all EU legislation. It presents working methods for individual legislative files, as well as a shared commitment to better annual and multi-annual planning and political support for the Regulatory Fitness and Performance (REFIT) Programme.
Better law-making should result in legislation that is comprehensible and clear, setting rights and obligations which are easy to understand for the parties concerned, avoid disproportionate costs and be practical to implement, the Commission says. There is a risk that this may not always be the case when a proposal is significantly amended in the course of the legislative process. To avoid this, a technical and independent analysis of specific amendments can be necessary.
Accordingly, the Commission proposes that each institution may call for an analysis to be carried out by an ad hoc panel made up of three experts, one selected by each institution but acting independently from the institutions (given the technical nature of the exercise). Such an assessment should be finalised and made public within a reasonable amount of time and take into account any existing impact assessment work (on the Commission's proposal or on co-legislators' significant amendments).
This panel has no relation with the Commission's Regulatory Scrutiny Board or REFIT Platform.
The Commission is hoping for agreement on the new inter-institutional agreement before the end of 2015. The draft new IIA proposes: a common commitment to the REFIT programme; impact assessment throughout the legislative process; continuous monitoring of the performance of EU regulation and more thorough evaluations; coordinated annual and multi-annual planning, including consultation on the Commission Work Programme; greater transparency on trilateral negotiations; and joint efforts to reduce unjustified “gold-plating” of EU legislation by member states. (Lionel Changeur)