Brussels, 04/02/2005 (Agence Europe) - The European Parliament's Committee on the Internal Market and Consumer Protection has announced the creation of a working group on the Services Directive. The aim of this working group is to accompany the work of the parliamentary committee in drafting its report for first reading. The working group will mainly facilitate exchange of views between the political groups on this sensitive issue. The trickiest points of the draft directive, the scope and the principle of country of origin, will require very close attention.
According to a press release, German Social Democrat Evelyne Gebhardt, Rapporteur on this dossier, said she hoped the group would be open to all members of the relevant committee and to all the own-initiative committee rapporteurs. Through concern for transparency, meetings will be public and the Council and Commission will be invited to attend. Four meetings are already scheduled: Monday 28 February, Thursday 17 March, Thursday 7 April and Wednesday 20 April. (See EUROPE of 3 February, p.7, on the remarks by President Barroso on this subject and, on p.8, on president Chirac's request to take a close look at the draft directive).