Members of the European Parliament on the Committee on the Internal Market and Consumer Protection (IMCO) and the Committee on Security and Defence (SEDE) gave their backing on Wednesday 24 June to two of the texts in the package simplifying defence legislation, on which negotiators from the European Parliament and the EU Council had reached an agreement on 10 June (see EUROPE 13885/22).
MEPs approved, by 64 votes in favour, one against and nine abstentions, the agreement on speeding up the granting of permits for defence preparedness projects. The agreement on the text amending Directives 2009/43/EC and 2009/81/EC, “as regards the simplification of intra-EU transfers of defence-related products and the simplification of procurement in the fields of defence and security”, for its part, was approved by 63 votes in favour, nine against and two abstentions.
This Thursday, MEPs on the SEDE Committee, as well as those on the Committee on the Environment, Climate and Food Safety (ENVI) and the Committee on Industry, Research and Energy (ITRE), will vote on the text amending Regulations (EC) No 1907/2006, (EC) No 1272/2008, (EU) No 528/2012, (EU) 2019/1021 and (EU) 2021/697 as regards defence preparedness, the facilitation of investment in defence and the conditions of the defence industry.
If the latter text is approved, the whole package will be put to a vote during the September plenary session.
For their part, the ambassadors of the Member States approved the Interinstitutional Agreement on 17 June (see EUROPE 13891/6). (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)