Strasbourg, 14/04/2005 (Agence Europe) - In Strasbourg on Thursday, the Conference of the Presidents of the political groups of the European Parliament welcomed the draft consolidated framework agreement on relations between the Parliament and the Commission, negotiations for which, with Commission Vice-President Margot Wallström, have just finished. This agreement, which boosts cooperation between the two institutions, includes a number of the promises made by President José Manuel Barroso at the investiture of the Commission. It has still to be formally approved by the Parliament plenary.
The draft framework agreement contains 43 articles and 2 annexes on 1) sending confidential information to the EP and 2) the timetable for the legislative and work programme of the Commission. The agreement deals with political responsibility, dialogue and the circulation of information, external relations, enlargement and international agreements, budgetary execution and cooperation on legislative procedures and programming. Although many articles come from the agreement governing relations between the Prodi Commission and the Parliament, new ones serve to reinforce this mechanism. Among the new provisions features a procedure to be followed in case a member of the European Commission is replaced mid-term (in application of article 215 of the EC treaty). In this case, “the President of the Commission intends to present the future member to the Parliament without delay and in full respect of the prerogatives of the institutions”. Another article provides that at the investiture, “the members designate of the Commission guarantee to divulge all relevant information without reservation, in line with the imperative of independence outlines in article 213 of the EC treaty”.
Every three months, the President of the Commission and/or the Vice-President competent for matters regarding inter-institutional relations will meet the Conference of the Presidents, in order to guarantee regular dialogue between the two institutions at the highest level. The same article calls for “the President of the Commission to attend meetings of the Conference of the Presidents at least twice a year”. The Commission also undertakes to inform the Parliament of the list of expert groups made up to help the Commission in carrying out its right of initiative. This list is regularly updated and published. The Commission will inform the competent parliamentary committee in an appropriate manner, by the specific and reasoned request of the committee's president, of the activities and composition of the groups.
In the field of external action, a new article provides that “at conferences of the donors, before making any financial promises implying new financial commitments which require the agreement of the budgetary authority, the Commission will inform the budgetary authority and examine its observations”. Both institutions also agreed to cooperate in the field of the observation of elections.
When drawing up its legislative and work programme, the Commission “takes account of the priorities expressed by the Parliament”, according to the agreement. The Commission also undertakes to provide “sufficient details on what is planned at each point of the legislative and work programme”. The last article states that this framework-agreement “will be reviewed after the treaty establishing a Constitution for Europe enters into force”.