Brussels, 21/05/2001 (Agence Europe) - Christa Randzio-Plath, Chair of the European Parliament's Economic and Monetary Committee on Thursday deplored that "lack of progress" so far on the path to an agreement between the EP and European Commission on regulating financial services. Following a meeting with Commissioner Frits Bolkestein, responsible for the Internal Market, Ms. Randzio-Plath declared that the members of the parliamentary committee "share fully in the objectives of improving and speeding up the regulation of securities markets and we will continue to try to broker a balanced deal that fully safeguards Parliament's rights under the co-decision procedure". She added that "this will, however be extremely difficult, as the Commission has stuck to its original position and showed no flexibility art all, while Parliament has put forward a number of options and proposals which have all be flatly rejected by the Commission". She concedes that progress has been made in the Commission's position in order to guarantee more and effective transparency as Parliament has always asked for".
The parliamentary committee is now waiting for the European Commission's definitive proposals on the directive on Market Abuse and Prospectuses. Sources close to the EP say that the major outlines of these proposals for a directive - which Mr. Bolkestein sent Ms. Randzio-Plath by letter (see EUROPE of 14 and 15 May, p.14) - are regarded as open to discussion by the EP's legal services. The timetable provides for the two sides having to reach agreement on regulating the market for the Gothenburg Summit.