Brussels, 27/05/2003 (Agence Europe) - On Tuesday the Convention diffused to all Convention Members, its proposals for part II (Charter of Fundamental Rights), II (policy and functioning of the Union) and IV (general and final provisions, which have not been substantially modified). The papers should very shortly be available on the Convention website (http: //european-convention.eu.int). Parts II and III will be debated on Saturday at the Convention plenary.
Part III doubles the number of domains that will be dealt with by codecision procedure, rebaptised as "normal legislative procedure". These will increase from 34 to 70. Qualified majority decision at the Council will be applied in 20 new domains, including social policy, structural and cohesion funds, agricultural policy and competition rules on agriculture, justice and home affairs (border controls, asylum and immigration). Unanimity is maintained for security and social protection, taxation, council and European voting rights, environmental measures that are currently voted at unanimity, fighting discrimination.
Taxation: unanimity remains the rule, except for administrative cooperation and the fight against tax fraud. Article 59 indicates that "when the Council, deciding by unanimity on Commission proposals observes that measures in paragraph 1 (taxation) involve administrative cooperation or the fight against fiscal fraud, it can decide by derogation to paragraph 1, opting for qualified majority when acts or European framework laws are established by these measures".
Economic and monetary policy: the Commission can directly address a "warning" to a Member State whose economic policy does not conform with the broad economic guidelines. The Council can then draw up recommendations to the Member State concerned and decide, "without taking into account the vote of the representative of the Member State concerned. Qualified majority can be defined by the majority of votes of the other Member States, representing at least three fifths of the population in these States". The Commission can then directly address a "warning" to a Member State in budgetary deficit and "propose" recommendations to the Council. When the Council has decided if there is effectively a deficit, it will address "recommendations" to this country "without taking into account" the vote of this country. Article 86 of the text give s Member States of the Euro zone the chance to adopt "additional measures…notably for enhancing coordination of their economic policies and budgetary discipline" (economic policy guidelines, surveillance and excessive deficits). In one of these cases, the voting rights of the countries that are not in the zone is "suspended". A protocol involving Eurogroup is also added to the annex of the treaty, laying down in the constitution, the current practice. It stipulates that, "Ministers from Euro zone countries elect a President for two years in the majority of Member States in the Euro zone". The Article on external representation of the Euro indicated that on the basis of a coordination of actions by members of the zone and the Commission, "the Council, on the Commission's proposal, can adopt European decision appropriate for ensuring unified representation at the institutions and international financial conferences". The status of the European Central Bank remains unchanged.
Freedom, security and justice area: this already contained some major changes by applying most of the issues in the "Community method" had the vote by qualified majority, including questions on prison criminal law. The Presidium nevertheless withdrew its family rights from the domain decided by qualified majority. Torn between those, like the Commission, which seeks the immediate setting up of a European Prosecutor for fighting against fraud and those who are opposed, the Presidium has kept the initial formula "a European law by the Council can make decisions in a European Court, with Eurojust as the starting point". The Presidium maintained the "right of initiative" for a quarter of the Member States in the domain of police cooperation and legal cooperation concerning criminal affairs.
External Union Action: confirms the general rule on voting at unanimity, with a few exceptions. "By derogation", the Council will be able to decide by majority when it "adopts a decision on the initiative of the Minister of Foreign Affairs, following a demand by the European Council". A Member State can oppose majority voting due to "reasons of vital national polices" (instead of 'important in the initial texts). In trade policy, unanimity applied when it deals with a sector in the EU (services and intellectual property).
Codecision in budgetary matter is simplified. During a vote in a single reading, the Parliament will be able to have the last word if there is no agreement or conciliation with the Council.