Brussels, 11/09/2000 (Agence Europe) - During its meeting of 11 September, the IGC preparatory group not only discussed the themes foreseen (codecision, EP, Court of Justice and Court of First Instance), but also broached, on the basis of a report by the French Presidency, the issue of the modification of Article 7 of the Treaty aiming to avoid situations in which one or other Member State could violate European values, and impose, if need be, sanctions. Let us recall the both Belgium and Austria had put forward proposals to the IGC for a modification of this Article.
Furthermore, EUROPE believes that the Presidency, in the face of the considerable difficulties met in the negotiations over the European Commission, decided not to raise the issue, at this stage, in informal meetings, but only to do so during the lunches of the working group.