Brussels, 20/02/2003 (Agence Europe) - The Chairman of the EPP-ED Group, Hans-Gert Pöttering, from Germany, welcomed the European Commission's proposal concerning the statute and financing arrangements for European political parties (yesterday's EUROPE, p.4). He said it was an important step in acknowledging the role of European political parties and ensuring transparency in their actions. Recalling that the Treaty of Nice provides for codecision procedure and qualified majority vote in...