Brussels, 09/06/2016 (Agence Europe) - Adopting a resolution on Thursday 9 June in Strasbourg lodged by the EP's legal committee, the European Parliament called again on the European Commission to present a draft regulation for an open, efficient and independent administration for the European Union.
On 15 January 2013, the EP called for such a regulation and made the call again in a resolution asking the European Commission to unveil draft legislation as part of its work programme for 2017.
The EP takes the view that over the years, the EU has introduced a large number of sector-specific administrative procedures in the form of binding and non-binding measures without necessarily taken account of the overall coherence of the system. These procedures include gaps and inconsistencies due to their complex diversity, explain the MEPs, hence the MEP's request for a group of common administrative procedure rules to be established at the level of EU institutions, bodies and organisms in order to boost legal security, fill gaps in the EU's legal system and contribute to respect for the rule of law.
The EP's legal committee has set up a working group that drafted a tangible draft regulation, annexed to the resolution in question. The draft regulation is not meant to replace the existing EU rules, but to fill gaps and provide greater clarity and coherence in interpreting the current measures for the good of citizens and enterprises, along with the administration and its agents, explain Heidi Hautala (Greens/EFA, Finland) and Pavel Svoboda (EPP, the Czech Republic) on behalf of the EP's legal committee.
During the debate the day before, European Commission vice-president Jyrki Katainen said that the Commission was not planning to unveil such a proposal: “The Commission regularly reviews its practices. The European Ombudsman also contributes to ensuring quality in the work of the institutions and bodies and can point out where concrete improvements could be made”.
“While we see that the Parliament wants a 'once-size-fits-all' rule for EU administration, the Commission rather thinks that we best serve citizens if we have administrative rules that are tailor-made”, concluded Katainen. (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)