Brussels, 28/02/2003 (Agence Europe) - "We are making progress - 33 articles are being drafted", European Convention Chairman Valéry Giscard d'Estaing noted at the opening of the plenary session on 27 February, as he presented draft articles 24 to 33 of the future Constitution, which concern the instruments available to the Union for carrying out its tasks (see also yesterday's EUROPE, p.5). VGE also presented two Draft Protocols on subsidiarity and proportionality and on the role of national parliaments (see below). Not only these new articles but also the Draft Protocols will be the subject of a plenary debate on 17 and 18 March (on this occasion, the Praesidium must also present draft articles on the Union's finance and on the area of freedom, security and justice).
The Praesidium's proposals on the Union's instruments comes in answer to the request for "simplification" made at the European Council of Laeken and are based on the conclusions reached by the Amato working group, "taking your views into account" Valéry Giscard d'Estaing told the Convention Members. He summarised the main proposals as follows:
Article 24 (on the "instruments available to the Union's institutions") "drastically reduces the number of instruments available to the Union" (Articles 25 to 28 give details of these instruments). This "doesn't seem much" but public opinion expects simplification, VGE remarked, specifying that these instruments will be: legislative procedures, namely "European law and the European framework law" and non-legislative procedures, namely "the European regulation and the European decision" (furthermore, there are "recommendations and opinions, for non-compulsory procedure"). Mr Giscard d'Estaing noted that they have brought in the kind of "hierarchy" proposed in the report by MEP Jean-Louis Bourlanges.
These new instruments will be applied in every field, and the "notion of pillars will disappear", VGE stressed, saying this is a "major innovation". Another innovation, he said, is that "codecision, a name that is familiar to you, is given a name that is more understandable for citizens, that of legislative procedure", VGE told the Convention Members (some exceptions will be specifically foreseen for this procedure, the Praesidium states in its document, announcing that it will submit a list of exceptions so that the plenary, on 17 and 18 March, may discuss the matter). Furthermore, he said, the "two institutions that share legislative power and represent dual legitimacy when they adopt the law and framework law do so in public".
Also (at Article 27), the Praesidium proposes the creation of a new category of procedure, "delegate procedure". This is a point on which the opinion of Convention Members will be very useful as the idea has caused "sometimes sceptical" comment, VGE admitted, trusting that the Convention will tackle this "innovative proposal with an open mind". The introduction of this new kind of procedure, he stressed, should "improve the quality of the legislation", allowing the Parliament and Council to "focus on what is essential and to delegate the technical aspects to the European Commission". With "precaution", the "legislator may recover its faculty of legislation", if this proves necessary.
Subsidiarity and national parliaments: Praesidium generally takes on board
the conclusions of Mendez de Vigo and Stuart working groups
On Friday morning, the Convention Members had also received envelopes with two Draft Protocols inside, on subsidiarity and on proportionality, and on the role of the national parliaments in the Union. "This is a coherent whole" affecting the responsibility of national parliaments in the "Union's democratic life", Valéry Giscard d'Estaing noted, specifying that the two documents take into account not only the conclusions of the Mendez de Vigo working group on subsidiarity (and the debate of 3 and 4 October last in plenary) but also those of the Stuart working group on national parliaments (and plenary debates of 28 October). VGE added that he believed these texts are "consensual".
The Protocol on application of the principles of subsidiarity and proportionality states: - the power to activate the early warning system (suggested in the report by MEP Inigo Mendez de Vigo in the event of violation of such principles) should be given to each national parliament, which was "also to be responsible for making the internal arrangements for consultation of each chamber in the case of bicameral parliaments and/or, where appropriate, regional parliaments with legislative powers"; - the threshold should be set at one third of the national parliaments, as suggested by the working group; - the Court of Justice should have jurisdiction to "hear and determine actions brought by Member States on grounds of infringement of the principle of subsidiarity, if necessary at the request of their national parliaments and/or regional parliaments with legislative powers". The Committee of the Regions should also have this faculty for legislative procedure for which it has been consulted. The text therefore refers to regional parliaments with legislative powers, as requested by several Convention Members.
The Protocol on the role of national parliaments in the European Union would amend the existing Protocol annexed to the Treaty of Amsterdam. The amendments relate primarily to the information intended for national parliaments concerning legislative proposals and other documents, as requested by Gisela Stuart, representing the House of Commons, in her report. The Praesidium has taken these suggestions on board, whereby, in particular: - the European Commission is to send all legislative proposals and all consultative documents directly to national parliaments, at the same time as to the EP and to the Council, and should also forward its Annual Policy Strategy and annual legislative and work programme simultaneously to national parliaments, the EP and the Council; - the Court of Auditors should send its annual report simultaneously to national parliaments, the European Parliament and the Council; - records of Council proceedings should be sent to national parliaments (and the European Parliament) at the same time as they are sent to governments.