The Court of Justice of the European Union is mentioned among the institutions of the EU in Article 13(1) TEU, with more detailed provisions in Articles 251 to 281 TFEU. Further, Protocol (No 3) on the statute of the Court of Justice of the European Union is annexed to the Treaties (latest consolidated version of the EU Treaties, incorporating the Lisbon Treaty, published OJEU 30.3.2010 C 83).
Rules of Procedure
Consolidated versions of the Rules of Procedure of the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) have now been published in the Official Journal of the European Union (OJEU) 2 July 2010 C 177:
CONSOLIDATED VERSION OF THE RULES OF PROCEDURE OF THE COURT OF JUSTICE; OJEU 2.7.2010 C 177/1
CONSOLIDATED VERSION OF THE RULES OF PROCEDURE OF THE GENERAL COURT; OJEU 2.7.2010 C 177/37
CONSOLIDATED VERSION OF THE RULES OF PROCEDURE OF THE EUROPEAN UNION CIVIL SERVICE TRIBUNAL; OJEU 2.7.2010 C 177/71
Ralf Grahn
Showing posts with label Official Journal. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Official Journal. Show all posts
Friday, 2 July 2010
Saturday, 9 January 2010
New structure: Official Journal of the European Union
Following the entry into force of the Treaty of Lisbon, the structure of the Official Journal of the European Union (OJEU) has been renewed, in particular with regard to Legislative acts (L I) and Non-legislative acts (L II).
The structure offers an overview of the rich materials available through the OJEU, as well as the various types of official documents in use by the European Union.
The paper is of interest i.a. to researchers, teachers, librarians and lawyers, as well as students of information science, economics, politics and law.
Even if nobody has asked me: The Official Journal is the best source of information about the European Union.
Ralf Grahn
P.S. Ideas, economic models and (copy)rights clash on the frontiers of the knowledge society. Bilingual – French and English - La Quadrature du Net (Squaring the Net) is right there, as an advocacy group that promotes the rights and freedoms of citizens on the Internet. In my humble opinion, it should submit to be listed among the now more than 500 great euroblogs on multilingual Bloggingportal.eu, a useful one-stop-shop for fact, opinion and gossip on European affairs, i.a. politics, policies, economics, finance and law.
The structure offers an overview of the rich materials available through the OJEU, as well as the various types of official documents in use by the European Union.
The paper is of interest i.a. to researchers, teachers, librarians and lawyers, as well as students of information science, economics, politics and law.
Even if nobody has asked me: The Official Journal is the best source of information about the European Union.
Ralf Grahn
P.S. Ideas, economic models and (copy)rights clash on the frontiers of the knowledge society. Bilingual – French and English - La Quadrature du Net (Squaring the Net) is right there, as an advocacy group that promotes the rights and freedoms of citizens on the Internet. In my humble opinion, it should submit to be listed among the now more than 500 great euroblogs on multilingual Bloggingportal.eu, a useful one-stop-shop for fact, opinion and gossip on European affairs, i.a. politics, policies, economics, finance and law.
Tuesday, 29 December 2009
EU Network and Information Security (NIS) resolution officially published
In the blog post EU Network and Information Security (NIS) (27 December 2009) we presented the Council resolution and detailed preparatory work by the Commission, mentioning that the annexed resolution would be published in the Official Journal of the European Union (OJEU), but that in the meantime we followed the Council document.
OJEU
Adhering to the principle to use the most authentic and official sources available, we can now announce the official publication of the Council resolution on NIS, which forms the tip of the iceberg:
COUNCIL RESOLUTION of 18 December 2009 on a collaborative European approach to Network and Information Security, published in the Official Journal of the European Union (OJEU) 29.12.2009 C 321/1.
NIS reasons
At the same time, we can repeat some of the reasons for the importance of NIS action noted by the Council:
Ralf Grahn
P.S. Read Coulisses de Bruxelles, by Jean Quatremer, and other great euroblogs listed on multilingual Bloggingportal.eu, our common “village well” for fact, opinion and gossip on European affairs.
OJEU
Adhering to the principle to use the most authentic and official sources available, we can now announce the official publication of the Council resolution on NIS, which forms the tip of the iceberg:
COUNCIL RESOLUTION of 18 December 2009 on a collaborative European approach to Network and Information Security, published in the Official Journal of the European Union (OJEU) 29.12.2009 C 321/1.
NIS reasons
At the same time, we can repeat some of the reasons for the importance of NIS action noted by the Council:
II. NOTING THAT:
1. Given the importance of electronic communications, infrastructures and services as a basis of economic and social activity, Network and Information Security (NIS) contributes to important values and objectives in society, such as democracy, privacy, economic growth, the free flow of ideas, and economic and political stability;
2. Information and communication technology systems, infrastructures and services, including the Internet, play a vital role for society, and their disruption has the potential to cause huge economic damage, underlining the importance of measures to increase protection and resilience aimed at ensuring continuation of critical services;
3. Security incidents risk undermining user confidence. While severe disruptions of networks and information systems could have a major economic and social impact, everyday problems and nuisances also risk eroding public confidence in technology, networks and services;
4. The threat landscape is evolving and growing, which increases the need to provide end-users, businesses and governments with electronic communications infrastructures that are robust and resilient by default and to identify the right incentives for the providers to do so in a timely manner;
5. There is a need to enhance and embed Network and Information Security in all policy areas and sectors of society, and to address the challenge of ensuring sufficient skills via both national and European actions and raising awareness among users of information and communication technology (ICT);
6. The completion and functioning of the Internal Market will require that network owners and service providers cooperate across borders, given that possible disruptive events in one Member State may also affect other Member States and the EU as a whole;
7. New usage patterns, such as cloud computing and software as a service, put additional emphasis on the importance of Network and Information Security;
8. Network and Information Security serves the objective of all parties, in all sectors of society, to be able to trust the information systems, therefore a cross-sector and cross-border approach is needed;
9. With the increasing use of ICT in society, Network and Information Security is a prerequisite for the reliable, safe and secure delivery of public services, such as e- Government;
10. ENISA has the potential to build on the important role it already plays in Network and Information Security.
Ralf Grahn
P.S. Read Coulisses de Bruxelles, by Jean Quatremer, and other great euroblogs listed on multilingual Bloggingportal.eu, our common “village well” for fact, opinion and gossip on European affairs.
Tuesday, 8 December 2009
New European Commission ─ Official proposal
Even if news travel instantly in the wired world, more or less accurately, we should not discount the importance of official records.
Just as there are national official gazettes (under different names), the European Union works under the rule of law, making laws and decisions based on the powers in the treaties, and publishing the results for the record.
If the media (aided by some crowd-pleasing parochial politicians) managed to present the nomination of the new Commission as a dramatic 27 nation tournament, with winners and losers, the Official Journal of the European Union (OJEU) serves students and other serious observers in another manner.
In general, students should look for primary sources. In addition, one can actually learn a thing or two about the legal framework, which led to the official outcome and will govern the next phases.
New Commission proposed
Let us take the list of proposed Commission members as an example:
COUNCIL DECISION, taken by common accord with the President-elect of the Commission, of 4 December 2009 adopting the list of the other persons whom the Council proposes for appointment as Members of the Commission (2009/903/EU), which was published OJEU 8.12.2009 L 321/51.
The decision has been taken by the Council of the European Union on 4 December 2009, after the Lisbon Treaty entered into force.
We see that the decision has been taken by common accord with the President-elect.
We see the special circumstances of the High Representative/Vice-President.
We are able to read a short history of the process.
The process, including the following steps, is outlined.
The term is until 31 October 2014.
All the names are recorded; not only “national champions”.
The decision refers to the legal base: Article 17(3) and (4) and (7), second subparagraph.
Legal base
The references to the treaty provisions offer us a framework for the decision and the next steps: Treaty on European Union TEU (0JEU 9.5.2008 C 115/25-26):
Conclusion
Just for the record…
The European Union is based on the treaties, now the amending Lisbon Treaty, which entered into force on 1 December 2009.
The treaties are of fundamental importance. All powers, new laws and decisions are based on the treaties, directly or derived from them. The EU is based on the rule of law.
Lacking immediacy and high drama, the official record of the European Union ─ the Official Journal ─ is more than a compilation of materials. The OJEU is an excellent teacher on how the EU functions.
In a world of bus passengers, the Lisbon Treaty is the manual for the drivers and auto mechanics.
Ralf Grahn
P.S. Do you find EUSSR myths fascinating? Are we EU citizens worth a better European Union? Educate yourself! Growing, multilingual Bloggingportal.eu now aggregates 494 euroblogs, representing both national viewpoints and pan-European angles.
You can access all the posts on the Posts page or concentrate on the editors’ choice of articles on the Home page. On most of the blogs you can comment and discuss our common European future. Please, do.
Blogs on EU affairs and European themes, by associations, networks or individuals, can join Bloggingportal.eu. Gain visibility, credibility and readers by proposing a new blog!
Just as there are national official gazettes (under different names), the European Union works under the rule of law, making laws and decisions based on the powers in the treaties, and publishing the results for the record.
If the media (aided by some crowd-pleasing parochial politicians) managed to present the nomination of the new Commission as a dramatic 27 nation tournament, with winners and losers, the Official Journal of the European Union (OJEU) serves students and other serious observers in another manner.
In general, students should look for primary sources. In addition, one can actually learn a thing or two about the legal framework, which led to the official outcome and will govern the next phases.
New Commission proposed
Let us take the list of proposed Commission members as an example:
COUNCIL DECISION, taken by common accord with the President-elect of the Commission, of 4 December 2009 adopting the list of the other persons whom the Council proposes for appointment as Members of the Commission (2009/903/EU), which was published OJEU 8.12.2009 L 321/51.
The decision has been taken by the Council of the European Union on 4 December 2009, after the Lisbon Treaty entered into force.
We see that the decision has been taken by common accord with the President-elect.
We see the special circumstances of the High Representative/Vice-President.
We are able to read a short history of the process.
The process, including the following steps, is outlined.
The term is until 31 October 2014.
All the names are recorded; not only “national champions”.
The decision refers to the legal base: Article 17(3) and (4) and (7), second subparagraph.
Legal base
The references to the treaty provisions offer us a framework for the decision and the next steps: Treaty on European Union TEU (0JEU 9.5.2008 C 115/25-26):
Article 17 TEU (excerpt)
-----
3. The Commission's term of office shall be five years.
The members of the Commission shall be chosen on the ground of their general competence and European commitment from persons whose independence is beyond doubt.
In carrying out its responsibilities, the Commission shall be completely independent. Without prejudice to Article 18(2), the members of the Commission shall neither seek nor take instructions from any Government or other institution, body, office or entity. They shall refrain from any action incompatible with their duties or the performance of their tasks.
4. The Commission appointed between the date of entry into force of the Treaty of Lisbon and 31 October 2014, shall consist of one national of each Member State, including its President and the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy who shall be one of its Vice-Presidents.
-----
7. Taking into account the elections to the European Parliament and after having held the appropriate consultations, the European Council, acting by a qualified majority, shall propose to the European Parliament a candidate for President of the Commission. This candidate shall be elected by the European Parliament by a majority of its component members. If he does not obtain the required majority, the European Council, acting by a qualified majority, shall within one month propose a new candidate who shall be elected by the European Parliament following the same procedure.
The Council, by common accord with the President-elect, shall adopt the list of the other persons whom it proposes for appointment as members of the Commission. They shall be selected, on the basis of the suggestions made by Member States, in accordance with the criteria set out in paragraph 3, second subparagraph, and paragraph 5, second subparagraph.
The President, the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and the other members of the Commission shall be subject as a body to a vote of consent by the European Parliament. On the basis of this consent the Commission shall be appointed by the European Council, acting by a qualified majority.
Conclusion
Just for the record…
The European Union is based on the treaties, now the amending Lisbon Treaty, which entered into force on 1 December 2009.
The treaties are of fundamental importance. All powers, new laws and decisions are based on the treaties, directly or derived from them. The EU is based on the rule of law.
Lacking immediacy and high drama, the official record of the European Union ─ the Official Journal ─ is more than a compilation of materials. The OJEU is an excellent teacher on how the EU functions.
In a world of bus passengers, the Lisbon Treaty is the manual for the drivers and auto mechanics.
Ralf Grahn
P.S. Do you find EUSSR myths fascinating? Are we EU citizens worth a better European Union? Educate yourself! Growing, multilingual Bloggingportal.eu now aggregates 494 euroblogs, representing both national viewpoints and pan-European angles.
You can access all the posts on the Posts page or concentrate on the editors’ choice of articles on the Home page. On most of the blogs you can comment and discuss our common European future. Please, do.
Blogs on EU affairs and European themes, by associations, networks or individuals, can join Bloggingportal.eu. Gain visibility, credibility and readers by proposing a new blog!
Thursday, 28 May 2009
Eur-Lex: Access to European Union law
Eur-Lex, the legal portal of the European Union, offers an incredible amount of serious information about the EU. The centerpiece is the Official Journal of the European Union (OJEU), where the legislation and other official acts are published.
While press releases, multimedia presentations and news reporting cover the instant information needs, the published acts and proposals are the primary sources for practitioners and serious students of European Union affairs.
Here is how Eur-Lex describes the available documentation:
About EUR-Lex
EUR-Lex provides free access to European Union law and other documents considered to be public. The website is available in 23 official languages of the European Union; choose your preferred language from the language bar at the top of the homepage.
The contents of the site amount to some 3 600 000 documents with texts dating back to 1951. The database is updated daily and every year around 15 000 documents are added.
EUR-Lex offers:
• daily editions of the Official Journal of the European Union online,
• simple search, advanced search and browsing options,
• the possibility to display and/or download documents (PDF, HTML, DOC, TIFF),
• analytical metadata for each document.
I would like to access the Official Journal of the European Union
The Official Journal of the European Union is the principal source of EUR-Lex content and it is published in the early morning after every working day. It consists of two series: L (Legislation) and C (Information and Notices). E and A are Official Journals published as annexes to the C series (e.g. C 307 A, C 309 E).
Latest issues are accessible from the homepage; click on the links in the upper right-hand corner, just under the language bar.
Previous issues can be found by clicking on the OFFICIAL JOURNAL link on top of the left-hand menu. You can find an issue of the Official Journal by browsing or by searching. All issues from 1998 onwards are available in PDF. To access texts published before 1998, use the SIMPLE SEARCH – Search by publication reference (Official Journal).
I would like to search for a document
There are two search interfaces in EUR-Lex; SIMPLE SEARCH and ADVANCED SEARCH. While advanced search provides a fuller range of search and display features, simple search will accommodate most users’ requirements.
You have a wide range of search options; search by search terms, search by date, search by author, search by natural number, etc.
Another option is to browse our collections and directories; choose from treaties, international agreements, legislation in force, preparatory acts, case-law and parliamentary questions. Each of the aforementioned sectors offers a browsing feature, such as the Directory of Community legislation in force.
What do I do with my search result?
You have direct access to all the documents in your list of search results; just click on your preferred format. You can also check which languages and formats are available, display complementary data, sort or refine your search result to get more relevant documents (find these options on the yellow bar and/or the search box). You can review and/or combine the queries made in one session by clicking on Search history.
To get more information on a document follow the link ‘bibliographic notice’ (example). The notice is a display of metadata (author, dates, indexes, form, related documents, etc.) which provides insight into each document and shows relationships between documents. For bilingual display of a document follow the link Bibliographic notice + Text (bilingual display).
EUR-Lex also offers consolidated versions of documents (where available). These versions are intended for documentation purposes only and have no legal value. Find them in the bibliographic notice or by browsing the Directory of Community legislation in force.
What else can I do?
You can read about EU law, the legislative procedures and EU institutions. You can consult the selection of new documents on the homepage or consult our thematic files.
EUR-Lex also offers links to the budget of the European Union, the institutions’ registers and other documentation and information sources.
New developments are announced in our Newsletter.
Ralf Grahn
While press releases, multimedia presentations and news reporting cover the instant information needs, the published acts and proposals are the primary sources for practitioners and serious students of European Union affairs.
Here is how Eur-Lex describes the available documentation:
About EUR-Lex
EUR-Lex provides free access to European Union law and other documents considered to be public. The website is available in 23 official languages of the European Union; choose your preferred language from the language bar at the top of the homepage.
The contents of the site amount to some 3 600 000 documents with texts dating back to 1951. The database is updated daily and every year around 15 000 documents are added.
EUR-Lex offers:
• daily editions of the Official Journal of the European Union online,
• simple search, advanced search and browsing options,
• the possibility to display and/or download documents (PDF, HTML, DOC, TIFF),
• analytical metadata for each document.
I would like to access the Official Journal of the European Union
The Official Journal of the European Union is the principal source of EUR-Lex content and it is published in the early morning after every working day. It consists of two series: L (Legislation) and C (Information and Notices). E and A are Official Journals published as annexes to the C series (e.g. C 307 A, C 309 E).
Latest issues are accessible from the homepage; click on the links in the upper right-hand corner, just under the language bar.
Previous issues can be found by clicking on the OFFICIAL JOURNAL link on top of the left-hand menu. You can find an issue of the Official Journal by browsing or by searching. All issues from 1998 onwards are available in PDF. To access texts published before 1998, use the SIMPLE SEARCH – Search by publication reference (Official Journal).
I would like to search for a document
There are two search interfaces in EUR-Lex; SIMPLE SEARCH and ADVANCED SEARCH. While advanced search provides a fuller range of search and display features, simple search will accommodate most users’ requirements.
You have a wide range of search options; search by search terms, search by date, search by author, search by natural number, etc.
Another option is to browse our collections and directories; choose from treaties, international agreements, legislation in force, preparatory acts, case-law and parliamentary questions. Each of the aforementioned sectors offers a browsing feature, such as the Directory of Community legislation in force.
What do I do with my search result?
You have direct access to all the documents in your list of search results; just click on your preferred format. You can also check which languages and formats are available, display complementary data, sort or refine your search result to get more relevant documents (find these options on the yellow bar and/or the search box). You can review and/or combine the queries made in one session by clicking on Search history.
To get more information on a document follow the link ‘bibliographic notice’ (example). The notice is a display of metadata (author, dates, indexes, form, related documents, etc.) which provides insight into each document and shows relationships between documents. For bilingual display of a document follow the link Bibliographic notice + Text (bilingual display).
EUR-Lex also offers consolidated versions of documents (where available). These versions are intended for documentation purposes only and have no legal value. Find them in the bibliographic notice or by browsing the Directory of Community legislation in force.
What else can I do?
You can read about EU law, the legislative procedures and EU institutions. You can consult the selection of new documents on the homepage or consult our thematic files.
EUR-Lex also offers links to the budget of the European Union, the institutions’ registers and other documentation and information sources.
New developments are announced in our Newsletter.
Ralf Grahn
Friday, 8 May 2009
European Union: Financial assistance to member states (legal search methods)
Readers may be familiar with the so called no-bailout clause and the prohibition against monetary financing of government expenditure, but on the other hand the European Union can assist member states with balance of payments problems.
During the financial and economic crisis these provisions are far from mere abstractions, and for those who want to look deeper into the issues, an opinion of the European Central Bank (ECB) offers a convenient gateway.
The Opinion of the European Central Bank CON/2009/37 of 20 April 2009 on a proposal for a Council Regulation amending Regulation (EC) No 332/2002 establishing a facility providing medium-term financial assistance for Member States' balances of payments has been published in the Official Journal of the European Union (OJEU) 8.5.2009 C 106/1.
This opinion does not only present the ECB’s favourable opinion on the increase of the ceiling of the assistance facility to EUR 50 billion, but as other legal acts and opinions it serves as a gateway to the relevant documents for interested readers.
***
Regulation 332/2002
First of all, we have a full reference to the Regulation to be amended in a footnote:
Regulation (EC) No 332/2002 of 18 February 2002 establishing a facility providing medium-term financial assistance for Member States’ balances of payments (OJ L 53, 23.2.2002, p. 1).
We now know where to find the original Regulation in the Official Journal.
To be on the safe side, we have to look for possible later amendments.
If we search with year and number using the simple search on Eur-Lex, we find a Bibliographic notice on the Regulation, giving us amendments and proposed amendments.
***
Proposal
We find the proposal by the Commission in the second footnote: COM(2009) 169 final.
If we turn to Preparatory acts on Eur-Lex, we find the Commission’s Proposal for a Council Regulation amending Regulation (EC) No 332/2002, establishing a facility providing medium-term financial assistance for Member States' balances of payments (Brussels, 8.4.2009 COM(2009) 169 final) with the help of the number.
We can use the document number COM(2009) 169 or the procedure number 2009/0053/CNS to track the proposal on PreLex.
We can follow the procedure with the help of the Legislative observatory of the European Parliament using (for instance) the procedure number.
In other words, we are able to check how the file advances, and we can access the documents.
***
Additional information
The ECB opinion makes a point about what the financial assistance is and what it is not allowed to be:
“In this context, the ECB notes that the procedure foreseen in the proposed regulation must fully comply with the prohibition on monetary financing laid down in Article 101(1) of the Treaty, read in conjunction with Council Regulation (EC) No 3603/93 of 13 December 1993 specifying definitions for the application of the prohibitions referred to in Articles 104 and 104b(1) of the Treaty ( 3 ).”
The third footnote ─ ( 3 ) OJ L 332, 31.12.1993, p. 1 ─ guides us towards Article 101(1) TEC and Council Regulation 3603/93.
The current (consolidated) versions of the treaties are found on Eur-Lex under Treaties.
We know when the Regulation was published, but an act older than 1998 is not found by OJ year and number. In addition, we have to be prepared for ten years of possible amendments.
After using the simple search (year and number) on Eur-Lex, we find the bibliographic note and the text. I notice no amendments.
***
Accessing EU documents
This is one illustration of how EU documents guide us to the information we need and how we can search for materials.
The legal materials are available including amendments, the search options help us and we can track the new proposals.
Most of the times, the services are up and running, and I find what I need.
On the other hand, there are much more sophisticated search options available, but my search skills are pretty basic.
If someone wants to share more advanced tips with the readers of this blog, I am grateful.
Ralf Grahn
During the financial and economic crisis these provisions are far from mere abstractions, and for those who want to look deeper into the issues, an opinion of the European Central Bank (ECB) offers a convenient gateway.
The Opinion of the European Central Bank CON/2009/37 of 20 April 2009 on a proposal for a Council Regulation amending Regulation (EC) No 332/2002 establishing a facility providing medium-term financial assistance for Member States' balances of payments has been published in the Official Journal of the European Union (OJEU) 8.5.2009 C 106/1.
This opinion does not only present the ECB’s favourable opinion on the increase of the ceiling of the assistance facility to EUR 50 billion, but as other legal acts and opinions it serves as a gateway to the relevant documents for interested readers.
***
Regulation 332/2002
First of all, we have a full reference to the Regulation to be amended in a footnote:
Regulation (EC) No 332/2002 of 18 February 2002 establishing a facility providing medium-term financial assistance for Member States’ balances of payments (OJ L 53, 23.2.2002, p. 1).
We now know where to find the original Regulation in the Official Journal.
To be on the safe side, we have to look for possible later amendments.
If we search with year and number using the simple search on Eur-Lex, we find a Bibliographic notice on the Regulation, giving us amendments and proposed amendments.
***
Proposal
We find the proposal by the Commission in the second footnote: COM(2009) 169 final.
If we turn to Preparatory acts on Eur-Lex, we find the Commission’s Proposal for a Council Regulation amending Regulation (EC) No 332/2002, establishing a facility providing medium-term financial assistance for Member States' balances of payments (Brussels, 8.4.2009 COM(2009) 169 final) with the help of the number.
We can use the document number COM(2009) 169 or the procedure number 2009/0053/CNS to track the proposal on PreLex.
We can follow the procedure with the help of the Legislative observatory of the European Parliament using (for instance) the procedure number.
In other words, we are able to check how the file advances, and we can access the documents.
***
Additional information
The ECB opinion makes a point about what the financial assistance is and what it is not allowed to be:
“In this context, the ECB notes that the procedure foreseen in the proposed regulation must fully comply with the prohibition on monetary financing laid down in Article 101(1) of the Treaty, read in conjunction with Council Regulation (EC) No 3603/93 of 13 December 1993 specifying definitions for the application of the prohibitions referred to in Articles 104 and 104b(1) of the Treaty ( 3 ).”
The third footnote ─ ( 3 ) OJ L 332, 31.12.1993, p. 1 ─ guides us towards Article 101(1) TEC and Council Regulation 3603/93.
The current (consolidated) versions of the treaties are found on Eur-Lex under Treaties.
We know when the Regulation was published, but an act older than 1998 is not found by OJ year and number. In addition, we have to be prepared for ten years of possible amendments.
After using the simple search (year and number) on Eur-Lex, we find the bibliographic note and the text. I notice no amendments.
***
Accessing EU documents
This is one illustration of how EU documents guide us to the information we need and how we can search for materials.
The legal materials are available including amendments, the search options help us and we can track the new proposals.
Most of the times, the services are up and running, and I find what I need.
On the other hand, there are much more sophisticated search options available, but my search skills are pretty basic.
If someone wants to share more advanced tips with the readers of this blog, I am grateful.
Ralf Grahn
Friday, 24 April 2009
Bulletin of the European Union ─ EU information sources
Are you a student, researcher, journalist, politician (MEP candidate), lobbyist, official or an interested citizen in need of updated information about the European Union in a given policy area?
Google has long ago become a verb, but for systematic information there are other resources worth mentioning.
EU Bulletin
Yesterday, 23 April 2009 the Bulletin of the European Union for December 2008 was published online.
General Report
The annual General Report on the Activities of the European Union (latest for the year 2008) offers students and others an overview of developments and sources concerning different policy areas.
EU Bulletin – final version
The monthly Bulletins present updated information. The new Bulletin EU 12-2008 covers the month of December, and it is the final version.
EU Bulletin – provisional versions
Quicker updates are available on the Bulletin EU Home page. At this moment, two provisional versions are available: The January/February Bulletin was published 25 March 2009, and the March Bulletin 2009 was put online 23 April 2009 (so the time lag was only about three weeks).
Almost up-to-date
Taken together, the General Report and the Bulletin offer comprehensive information with detailed references for further study, leaving the researcher only a few weeks to explore from other sources, to be fully updated on an issue of major importance.
Once you have exact references, you may more easily find additional information on the web pages of the institutions, even the Council.
In addition, the EU Bulletin pages contain useful links to acronyms, a glossary, Pre-Lex with Commission proposals and summaries of existing legislation. (The links to the index and the cumulative index did not work.)
Official Journal
The Official Journal of the European Union (OJEU) is the primary source to use for official EU materials, especially final legislative acts and decisions.
News and discussion
If you need the latest news, you can go directly to the press releases by the EU institutions (Commission, European Parliament, Council etc.) or you can follow the specialised news services with additional coverage, such as EurActiv, EUobserver and EUbusiness. For discussion among EU citizens and civil society, you can access Bloggingportal.eu, which aggregates 345 Euroblogs.
Ralf Grahn
Google has long ago become a verb, but for systematic information there are other resources worth mentioning.
EU Bulletin
Yesterday, 23 April 2009 the Bulletin of the European Union for December 2008 was published online.
General Report
The annual General Report on the Activities of the European Union (latest for the year 2008) offers students and others an overview of developments and sources concerning different policy areas.
EU Bulletin – final version
The monthly Bulletins present updated information. The new Bulletin EU 12-2008 covers the month of December, and it is the final version.
EU Bulletin – provisional versions
Quicker updates are available on the Bulletin EU Home page. At this moment, two provisional versions are available: The January/February Bulletin was published 25 March 2009, and the March Bulletin 2009 was put online 23 April 2009 (so the time lag was only about three weeks).
Almost up-to-date
Taken together, the General Report and the Bulletin offer comprehensive information with detailed references for further study, leaving the researcher only a few weeks to explore from other sources, to be fully updated on an issue of major importance.
Once you have exact references, you may more easily find additional information on the web pages of the institutions, even the Council.
In addition, the EU Bulletin pages contain useful links to acronyms, a glossary, Pre-Lex with Commission proposals and summaries of existing legislation. (The links to the index and the cumulative index did not work.)
Official Journal
The Official Journal of the European Union (OJEU) is the primary source to use for official EU materials, especially final legislative acts and decisions.
News and discussion
If you need the latest news, you can go directly to the press releases by the EU institutions (Commission, European Parliament, Council etc.) or you can follow the specialised news services with additional coverage, such as EurActiv, EUobserver and EUbusiness. For discussion among EU citizens and civil society, you can access Bloggingportal.eu, which aggregates 345 Euroblogs.
Ralf Grahn
Sunday, 15 March 2009
European Parliament: Publishing proceedings (accessibility & accountability)
Public parliamentary proceedings and records are important. At treaty level the European Parliament is given the duty to publish its proceedings officially.
Internet publication and press services cater to immediate and practical needs.
It is a huge task for the European Parliament to serve nearly 500 million EU residents and more than 700 MEPs (more or less equally) in 23 official languages.
The internal bodies of the EP could make their materials more accessible to EU citizens, but in accessibility and accountability the European Parliament beats the Council fair and square.
***
Current treaty
Article 199 of the Treaty establishing the European Community (TEC), as published in the consolidated version of the treaties in force in the Official Journal of the European Union (OJEU) 29.12.2006 C 321 E/135, concerns two aspects of the European Parliament:
1) adopting the Rules of Procedure, and
2) publishing the proceedings.
Article 199 TEC
The European Parliament shall adopt its Rules of Procedure, acting by a majority of its Members.
The proceedings of the European Parliament shall be published in the manner laid down in its Rules of Procedure.
***
Original Lisbon Treaty
Article 2, point 187 of the original Treaty of Lisbon amended the second paragraph of Article 197 TEC (OJEU 17.12.2007 C 306/103):
187) In the second paragraph of Article 199, the words ‘manner laid down in its Rules of Procedure’ shall be replaced by ‘manner laid down in the Treaties and in its Rules of Procedure’.
***
Consolidated Lisbon Treaty
In the consolidated (readable) Treaty of Lisbon the slightly amended provision became Article 232 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU), published OJEU 9.5.2008 C 115/152:
Article 232 TFEU
(ex Article 199 TEC)
The European Parliament shall adopt its Rules of Procedure, acting by a majority of its Members.
The proceedings of the European Parliament shall be published in the manner laid down in the Treaties and in its Rules of Procedure.
***
EP Rules of Procedure
Minutes
The main provisions on publishing are found in the Rules of Procedure of the European Parliament (16th edition, October 2008).
The minutes of the proceedings, containing the decisions and the names of speakers, are produced and approved quickly.
They are published in the Official Journal of the European Union (OJEU). Actual publication of the minutes lags far behind the month mentioned.
The 257 page minutes of the sittings from 15 to 18 December 2008 were published in OJEU 12.3.2009 C 58E, almost three months later. They were available in the official languages, including Maltese and the newest ones Bulgarian and Romanian, but not in Gaelic (Irish).
The lag means that the minutes officially published are of interest to researchers, but for more immediate purposes Internet publishing in general and the Press service of the EP are more suitable:
CHAPTER 7 PUBLIC RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS
Rule 172 Minutes
1. The minutes of each sitting, containing the decisions of Parliament and the names of speakers, shall be distributed at least half an hour before the beginning of the afternoon period of the next sitting.
[Official explanation: In the context of legislative proceedings, any amendments adopted by Parliament are also deemed to be decisions within the meaning of this paragraph, even if the relevant Commission proposal or the Council's common position is ultimately rejected, pursuant to Rule 52(1) or Rule 61(3) respectively.]
The texts adopted by Parliament shall be distributed separately. Where legislative texts adopted by Parliament contain amendments, they shall be published in a consolidated version.
2. At the beginning of the afternoon period of each sitting the President shall place before Parliament, for its approval, the minutes of the previous sitting.
3. If any objections are raised to the minutes Parliament shall, if necessary, decide whether the changes requested should be considered. No Member may speak on the minutes for more than one minute.
4. The minutes shall be signed by the President and the Secretary-General and preserved in the records of Parliament. They shall be published within one month in the Official Journal of the European Union.
***
Verbatim reports
Written records of the proceedings are produced, but published in a little known annex to the Official Journal at a more leisurely pace:
Rule 173 Verbatim reports
1. A verbatim report of the proceedings of each sitting shall be drawn up in all official languages.
2. Speakers shall be required to return corrections to typescripts of their speeches to the Secretariat within one week.
3. The verbatim report shall be published as an annex to the Official Journal of the European Union.
4. Members may request extracts of the verbatim report to be translated at short notice.
***
Audiovisual record
There is more immediacy to the posting of the proceedings of the plenary on the Internet, officially immediately after the sitting.
In practice it is quicker than that, because you can follow the proceedings live (Séance en direct), either listening to the speakers in the original language or with (almost) simultaneous interpretation depending on if there is a bridging language between the source language and your language (target language):
Rule 173 a Audiovisual record of proceedings
Immediately after the sitting, an audiovisual record of the proceedings, including the soundtrack from all interpretation booths, shall be produced and made available on the Internet.
***
Press service and information on the web
Accountability and accessibility
The Press service of the European Parliament produces material ahead of the sessions and of the sittings on a daily basis. The press releases often contain links to the committee reports or the approved texts (resolutions).
In addition, the web pages of the European Parliament offer general information about the EP and MEPs and links to the political groups, as well as possibilities to find meeting documents, draft reports and reports of committees.
The Legislative Observatory offers search opportunities (not always easy to master) and possibilities to follow individual procedures.
Ahead of the European elections in June 2009, the European Parliament has launched informative election pages.
All in all, the proceedings of the European Parliament leave a fairly clear paper trail (although the reasons given may be opaque) and the materials on the political work are relatively accessible for citizens. Compare with the Council’s web pages, and you see the difference.
Although relatively few EU citizens are interested in the inner workings of the European Parliament, it would enhance visibility and accountability to make the meeting documents of the internal bodies (Bureau, Conference of Presidents) readily available on the Internet.
Ralf Grahn
Internet publication and press services cater to immediate and practical needs.
It is a huge task for the European Parliament to serve nearly 500 million EU residents and more than 700 MEPs (more or less equally) in 23 official languages.
The internal bodies of the EP could make their materials more accessible to EU citizens, but in accessibility and accountability the European Parliament beats the Council fair and square.
***
Current treaty
Article 199 of the Treaty establishing the European Community (TEC), as published in the consolidated version of the treaties in force in the Official Journal of the European Union (OJEU) 29.12.2006 C 321 E/135, concerns two aspects of the European Parliament:
1) adopting the Rules of Procedure, and
2) publishing the proceedings.
Article 199 TEC
The European Parliament shall adopt its Rules of Procedure, acting by a majority of its Members.
The proceedings of the European Parliament shall be published in the manner laid down in its Rules of Procedure.
***
Original Lisbon Treaty
Article 2, point 187 of the original Treaty of Lisbon amended the second paragraph of Article 197 TEC (OJEU 17.12.2007 C 306/103):
187) In the second paragraph of Article 199, the words ‘manner laid down in its Rules of Procedure’ shall be replaced by ‘manner laid down in the Treaties and in its Rules of Procedure’.
***
Consolidated Lisbon Treaty
In the consolidated (readable) Treaty of Lisbon the slightly amended provision became Article 232 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU), published OJEU 9.5.2008 C 115/152:
Article 232 TFEU
(ex Article 199 TEC)
The European Parliament shall adopt its Rules of Procedure, acting by a majority of its Members.
The proceedings of the European Parliament shall be published in the manner laid down in the Treaties and in its Rules of Procedure.
***
EP Rules of Procedure
Minutes
The main provisions on publishing are found in the Rules of Procedure of the European Parliament (16th edition, October 2008).
The minutes of the proceedings, containing the decisions and the names of speakers, are produced and approved quickly.
They are published in the Official Journal of the European Union (OJEU). Actual publication of the minutes lags far behind the month mentioned.
The 257 page minutes of the sittings from 15 to 18 December 2008 were published in OJEU 12.3.2009 C 58E, almost three months later. They were available in the official languages, including Maltese and the newest ones Bulgarian and Romanian, but not in Gaelic (Irish).
The lag means that the minutes officially published are of interest to researchers, but for more immediate purposes Internet publishing in general and the Press service of the EP are more suitable:
CHAPTER 7 PUBLIC RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS
Rule 172 Minutes
1. The minutes of each sitting, containing the decisions of Parliament and the names of speakers, shall be distributed at least half an hour before the beginning of the afternoon period of the next sitting.
[Official explanation: In the context of legislative proceedings, any amendments adopted by Parliament are also deemed to be decisions within the meaning of this paragraph, even if the relevant Commission proposal or the Council's common position is ultimately rejected, pursuant to Rule 52(1) or Rule 61(3) respectively.]
The texts adopted by Parliament shall be distributed separately. Where legislative texts adopted by Parliament contain amendments, they shall be published in a consolidated version.
2. At the beginning of the afternoon period of each sitting the President shall place before Parliament, for its approval, the minutes of the previous sitting.
3. If any objections are raised to the minutes Parliament shall, if necessary, decide whether the changes requested should be considered. No Member may speak on the minutes for more than one minute.
4. The minutes shall be signed by the President and the Secretary-General and preserved in the records of Parliament. They shall be published within one month in the Official Journal of the European Union.
***
Verbatim reports
Written records of the proceedings are produced, but published in a little known annex to the Official Journal at a more leisurely pace:
Rule 173 Verbatim reports
1. A verbatim report of the proceedings of each sitting shall be drawn up in all official languages.
2. Speakers shall be required to return corrections to typescripts of their speeches to the Secretariat within one week.
3. The verbatim report shall be published as an annex to the Official Journal of the European Union.
4. Members may request extracts of the verbatim report to be translated at short notice.
***
Audiovisual record
There is more immediacy to the posting of the proceedings of the plenary on the Internet, officially immediately after the sitting.
In practice it is quicker than that, because you can follow the proceedings live (Séance en direct), either listening to the speakers in the original language or with (almost) simultaneous interpretation depending on if there is a bridging language between the source language and your language (target language):
Rule 173 a Audiovisual record of proceedings
Immediately after the sitting, an audiovisual record of the proceedings, including the soundtrack from all interpretation booths, shall be produced and made available on the Internet.
***
Press service and information on the web
Accountability and accessibility
The Press service of the European Parliament produces material ahead of the sessions and of the sittings on a daily basis. The press releases often contain links to the committee reports or the approved texts (resolutions).
In addition, the web pages of the European Parliament offer general information about the EP and MEPs and links to the political groups, as well as possibilities to find meeting documents, draft reports and reports of committees.
The Legislative Observatory offers search opportunities (not always easy to master) and possibilities to follow individual procedures.
Ahead of the European elections in June 2009, the European Parliament has launched informative election pages.
All in all, the proceedings of the European Parliament leave a fairly clear paper trail (although the reasons given may be opaque) and the materials on the political work are relatively accessible for citizens. Compare with the Council’s web pages, and you see the difference.
Although relatively few EU citizens are interested in the inner workings of the European Parliament, it would enhance visibility and accountability to make the meeting documents of the internal bodies (Bureau, Conference of Presidents) readily available on the Internet.
Ralf Grahn
Friday, 13 March 2009
EU budget published officially
Nothing dramatic about this, since the contents of the 2009 budget of the European Union (and preparatory documents) have been available for a long time.
For students, teachers, researchers and others who prefer exact and official references the publication of the general budget of the European Union for the financial year 2009 in the Official Journal of the European Union (OJEU) offers exactly that.
Look for OJEU 13.3.2009 L 69.
Ralf Grahn
For students, teachers, researchers and others who prefer exact and official references the publication of the general budget of the European Union for the financial year 2009 in the Official Journal of the European Union (OJEU) offers exactly that.
Look for OJEU 13.3.2009 L 69.
Ralf Grahn
Friday, 26 December 2008
Official Journal of the European Union
Is the Official Journal of the European Union (OJEU or OJ for short) in need of improvement?
It started with a blog post by Julien Frisch over at:
http://julienfrisch.blogspot.com
Julien’s article was called Decision on the legal nature of the electronic version of the Official Journal of the European Union, and it referred to an official document discussing technical options.
He went on to invite a comment from me. While my technical ‘nous’ score hovers around zilch, it led me to jot down a few practical thoughts about the Official Journal and the Eur-Lex portal from the viewpoint of a daily user and an EU citizen.
The practical message is: Improvements are needed and there are examples that it can be done.
Here is the comment on Julien’s blog:
Julien,
Thank you for your invitation to comment, although I feel more like a car driver or even passenger than an auto mechanic or assembler of cars. In other words, my experience of the Official Journal is that of a daily user, who tries to think about the needs of other EU citizens, not a technical expert.
My layman’s guess would be that in the long run we are either going to have an authentic digital Official Journal, with paper copies stored away as a back-up, which would mean that the signatures would be electronic, or the symbolic importance of signing is seen as great enough to attach the signatures to paper, but the digital OJ would be as official.
For a practitioner, the availability of the OJ (and its different language versions) on the web is crucial. Real time delivery, instead of snail mail is one evident advantage.
I already mentioned the language versions. Occasionally I use a number of them for comparison, but it would lead to storage problems and to expense to have to subscribe to several versions.
One of the problems facing historians, political scientists and lawyers is the lack of certain key pieces of legislation in currently used formats, like pdf. I hope that the EU would make available at least all the treaties since 1951 and a number of older crucial documents (like the White Book leading to the Single European Act and the intergovernmental conferences) in an accessible format and somewhere easy to find.
Even if the paper you referred to was quite technical, there were some heartening words about improved search facilities.
It is often hard to know if a certain feature is lacking or if I just lack the technical ‘nous’ to find desired items, but in my experience the Official Journal functions well if you already have the exact reference or a link leading to the exact act.
If not, the searches sometimes turn out to be laborious.
Consolidated versions of legislative acts are unofficial, but for users with practical aims legislation in force is a great help. I have found national legal portals in Sweden and Finland much easier to use in this respect, and the acts much easier to find than when I search on Eur-Lex.
These portals usually offer you options to go for the original act (or amending act), the legislation in force (continuously updated consolidated versions), the preparatory works (governemtn bills) and information about the legislative process including links to parliamentary committee documents etc., as well as secondary legislation like regulations.
All this is available with a few clicks, without time-consuming searches.
Evidently something needs to be done and could be done at EU level.
The EU could definitively learn from some of the member states, because accessible legislation for free is, in my humble opinion, a fundamental democratic right.
It is easy to see the multitude of European languages, even the 23 official EU languages, as a drain on resources. But my view is that this diversity is a European reality, and our common legislation has to be accessible to EU citizens in their own languages.
It started with a blog post by Julien Frisch over at:
http://julienfrisch.blogspot.com
Julien’s article was called Decision on the legal nature of the electronic version of the Official Journal of the European Union, and it referred to an official document discussing technical options.
He went on to invite a comment from me. While my technical ‘nous’ score hovers around zilch, it led me to jot down a few practical thoughts about the Official Journal and the Eur-Lex portal from the viewpoint of a daily user and an EU citizen.
The practical message is: Improvements are needed and there are examples that it can be done.
Here is the comment on Julien’s blog:
Julien,
Thank you for your invitation to comment, although I feel more like a car driver or even passenger than an auto mechanic or assembler of cars. In other words, my experience of the Official Journal is that of a daily user, who tries to think about the needs of other EU citizens, not a technical expert.
My layman’s guess would be that in the long run we are either going to have an authentic digital Official Journal, with paper copies stored away as a back-up, which would mean that the signatures would be electronic, or the symbolic importance of signing is seen as great enough to attach the signatures to paper, but the digital OJ would be as official.
For a practitioner, the availability of the OJ (and its different language versions) on the web is crucial. Real time delivery, instead of snail mail is one evident advantage.
I already mentioned the language versions. Occasionally I use a number of them for comparison, but it would lead to storage problems and to expense to have to subscribe to several versions.
One of the problems facing historians, political scientists and lawyers is the lack of certain key pieces of legislation in currently used formats, like pdf. I hope that the EU would make available at least all the treaties since 1951 and a number of older crucial documents (like the White Book leading to the Single European Act and the intergovernmental conferences) in an accessible format and somewhere easy to find.
Even if the paper you referred to was quite technical, there were some heartening words about improved search facilities.
It is often hard to know if a certain feature is lacking or if I just lack the technical ‘nous’ to find desired items, but in my experience the Official Journal functions well if you already have the exact reference or a link leading to the exact act.
If not, the searches sometimes turn out to be laborious.
Consolidated versions of legislative acts are unofficial, but for users with practical aims legislation in force is a great help. I have found national legal portals in Sweden and Finland much easier to use in this respect, and the acts much easier to find than when I search on Eur-Lex.
These portals usually offer you options to go for the original act (or amending act), the legislation in force (continuously updated consolidated versions), the preparatory works (governemtn bills) and information about the legislative process including links to parliamentary committee documents etc., as well as secondary legislation like regulations.
All this is available with a few clicks, without time-consuming searches.
Evidently something needs to be done and could be done at EU level.
The EU could definitively learn from some of the member states, because accessible legislation for free is, in my humble opinion, a fundamental democratic right.
It is easy to see the multitude of European languages, even the 23 official EU languages, as a drain on resources. But my view is that this diversity is a European reality, and our common legislation has to be accessible to EU citizens in their own languages.
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