Brussels, 16/02/2016 (Agence Europe) - The European Parliament is prepared to negotiate with the Council of the EU as soon as possible on a legislative act aiming to lay down in European law the hoped-for agreement of the forthcoming European Council on access to British social benefits for European citizens. However, it declines to commit itself on the outcome of these negotiations in advance.
I have given British Prime Minister David Cameron the “clear commitment” that the European Parliament will get involved “intensively” and “constructively” in the legislative process, but “we can give no guarantee on the outcome” of the inter-institutional negotiations, European Parliament President Martin Schulz said on Tuesday 16 February following a meeting with Cameron. Once the “framework” has been established at the European Council (Ed: and the UK has decided by referendum to stay in the EU), we will start on the legislative work, which will “not constitute a veto”, but the expression of the “democratic process” at European level, the German Social Democrat explained.
On Thursday 18 and Friday 19 February Schulz will, for the first time, attend the negotiations of the European Council responsible for reaching an agreement on the renewed relationship between the EU and the United Kingdom (see other article). It is hoped that this unprecedented inclusive process will serve as a guarantee ahead of the co-decision negotiations on the legislative act which will allow the British to limit granting social benefits to European citizens active in the United Kingdom. The countries of Central and Eastern Europe, many citizens of which are directly concerned, want only the United Kingdom to be able to apply the safeguard mechanism.
Initially planning to address the conference of the presidents of the political groups, Cameron finally opted for separate meetings involving the negotiators of the EP on the British question and certain group presidents. According to one observer, this allowed him to avoid direct confrontation with his fellow Briton Nigel Farage, the president of the Europhobic group EFDD.
The leader of the ALDE group, Belgium's Guy Verhofstadt, and of the S&D, the Italian MEP Gianni Pittella, echoed Schulz's words. We will have an open and constructive attitude, but “we cannot predict the outcome of the negotiations”, Verhofstadt said. He went on to state that recognising the “special status” enjoyed by the United Kingdom in the EU is an opportunity also to deepen the integration between countries of the eurozone. Refusing to accept any discrimination between European workers, Pittella pointed out that the EP cannot modify the future agreement of the European Council, but only the legislative act introducing the safeguard mechanism on access to social benefits. He said that if other countries wish to benefit from this mechanism, they will have to do so at the summit and “not in six months' time”.
Within the Social Democrat family, there was almost relief that Cameron is not completely calling the pillar of European social legislation into question. The British Labour Party, an important component of the S&D, will support the agreement no matter what in order to keep the United Kingdom in the EU, arguing that they can always change British social legislation if they return to power, but that they will be unable to reverse any exit of the United Kingdom from the EU.
Anger among the Greens/EFA and GUE/NGL groups. The Greens/EFA group criticised the attitude of the British prime minister for declining to be heard by the conference of the presidents of the political groups. Cameron did not have the diplomatic decency to pay a courtesy visit to the Greens, even though they will be campaigning for the 'yes' vote in the British referendum, said Belgian MEP Philippe Lamberts, who said that he did not feel bound by the political commitment to be taken at the summit by Schulz. Like the Greens, the GUE/NGL group criticised the attitude of the EP president, which they fear may harm the credibility of the Parliament. “Discussions taking place behind closed doors cannot replace an open and transparent debate in the presence of democratically elected representatives”, said the group leader, Germany's Gabi Zimmer. As European legislator, the EP should be fully involved in negotiations with the UK as the British requests touch upon fundamental principles, such as equality of treatment and the freedom of movement, she added. (Original version in French by Mathieu Bion)