EU Lisbon Treaty implementation: European diplomatic service EEAS

At this stage, the second basic document regarding Lisbon Treaty implementation is the report on guidelines for the future European diplomatic service, more exactly the European External Action Service (EEAS). The member states started work on the EEAS without waiting for a proposal from the High Representative.

Now that the HR has been (s)elected, the invitation to present a formal (detailed) proposals lies waiting for Catherine Ashton.




The presidency conclusions of the European Council 29 to 30 October 2009 (document 15265/09) had this to say about the implementation of the Lisbon Treaty (point 3, page 2):

“The European Council --- It endorses the Presidency's report on guidelines for the European External Action Service (doc. 14930/09) and invites the future High Representative to present a proposal for the organisation and functioning of the EEAS as soon as possible after the entry into force of the Lisbon Treaty with a view to its adoption by the Council at the latest by the end of April 2010. In this context, it also recognises the need, as underlined in the European Security Strategy, for the European Union to become more capable, more coherent and more strategic as a global actor, including in its relations with strategic partners, in its neighbourhood and in conflict-affected areas.”

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EEAS report



The Presidency report to the European Council on the European External Action Service (23 October 2009, document 14930/09) comprises 34 points on 10 pages.

In this blog post, we are content to quote the last point (34) on the way forward, which offers an overview of the following stages of implementation:

WAY FORWARD

34. There will be several stages before reaching the final shape of the EEAS. The Council will be fully involved throughout the whole process.

• A first stage from the entry into force of the Treaty to the adoption of the Council decision on the organisation and functioning of the EEAS. The HR should submit his/her proposal with a view to it being adopted at the latest by the end of April 2010. For that reason it is of key importance that preparatory work should continue at full speed within the current format in the run up to the entry into force of the Treaty. From the start, as well as having the immediate support of the external relations structures of the Commission and of the GSC, he/she will be supported by a small preparatory team which should be composed of representatives of Member States, Commission and GSC. In parallel to preparations for that decision, work must be carried out to make the relevant adaptations in existing rules, such as the Staff and Financial Regulations with a view to their adoption at the same time as the Council decision on the organisation and functioning of the EEAS. Close contacts with the European Parliament should be continued during this stage.

• A second stage for setting up the EEAS, from the adoption of the Council decision to full cruising speed. A first status report should be made in 2012.

• When the EEAS has been functioning for some time at full speed, there should be a review of the functioning and organisation of the EEAS followed, if necessary, by a revision of the decision. This review should also cover the scope of the EEAS, including delegations' role in consular affairs. Such a review should take place in 2014.

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Legal base


The legal base, which is mentioned in the presidency report, is Article 27(3) of the Treaty on European Union (TEU), but we take the opportunity to quote the whole Article 27 TEU, which offers an outline of the tasks of the newly elected high representative (OJEU 9.5.2008 c 115/32):

Article 27 TEU


1. The High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, who shall chair the Foreign Affairs Council, shall contribute through his proposals towards the preparation of the common foreign and security policy and shall ensure implementation of the decisions adopted by the European Council and the Council.

2. The High Representative shall represent the Union for matters relating to the common foreign and security policy. He shall conduct political dialogue with third parties on the Union's behalf and shall express the Union's position in international organisations and at international conferences.

3. In fulfilling his mandate, the High Representative shall be assisted by a European External Action Service. This service shall work in cooperation with the diplomatic services of the Member States and shall comprise officials from relevant departments of the General Secretariat of the Council and of the Commission as well as staff seconded from national diplomatic services of the Member States. The organisation and functioning of the European External Action Service shall be established by a decision of the Council. The Council shall act on a proposal from the High Representative after consulting the European Parliament and after obtaining the consent of the Commission.

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Formidable challenges lie in wait for the EU’s chief diplomat, Catherine Ashton.




Ralf Grahn



P.S. Do you find EUSSR myths fascinating? Are we EU citizens worth a better European Union? Read some or all of the 481 Euroblogs aggregated on multilingual Bloggingportal.eu. On most of the blogs you can comment and discuss our common European future.

EU Lisbon Treaty implementation: Progress report

The presidency conclusions of the European Council 29 to 30 October 2009 (document 15265/09) had this to say about the general implementation of the Lisbon Treaty (point 3, page 2):

“The European Council takes note of the preparatory work in view of the entry into force of the Lisbon Treaty (doc. 14928/09).”

The Progress report, dated 23 October 2009, has the following heading: Progress report from the Presidency to the European Council - Preparatory work in view of the entry into force of the Treaty of Lisbon (document 14928/09). It is a short paper with an introduction and nine brief points on a total of five pages, summarising the state of play:




ANNEX

PROGRESS REPORT FROM THE PRESIDENCY TO THE EUROPEAN COUNCIL
PREPARATORY WORK IN VIEW OF THE ENTRY INTO FORCE OF THE TREATY OF LISBON


Introduction


1. During the European Council meeting on 18-19 June 2009, Heads of State or Government reaffirmed their wish to see the Treaty of Lisbon enter into force by the end of 2009, on the condition all the instruments of ratification have been deposited.

2. On that basis, the Swedish Presidency undertook, together with other Member States and the Commission, preparatory work in view of the entry into force of the Treaty of Lisbon. It has taken place against the background of the ratification process for the Treaty of Lisbon, which is still underway. It is clear that decisions can only be taken once the Treaty of Lisbon has entered into force after ratification by all 27 Member States.

3. Over the last months, the Presidency has convened a series of meetings of Permanent Representatives (including a Commission representative) to examine the various issues linked to the entry into force of the Treaty of Lisbon with a focus on most urgent issues which need to be settled before that date. This examination built on previous discussions, in particular during the Slovene Presidency, the results of which are summarised in document 10650/08. The present report contains a summary of the main points covered in the context of the 2009 discussions.

4. In view of the fact that a number of issues related to the entry into force of the Treaty of Lisbon will require some form of agreement with the European Parliament (EP), the Presidency has had regular contacts with the EP. These have remained exploratory in nature, but have enabled the Parliament to provide useful information on the issues which are of particular interest to it, and which it considers will require a common understanding between the institutions.


Results and state of play


1. Delegated and Implementing Acts (Articles 290 and 291 TFEU)


As regards delegated acts (i.e. non-legislative acts of general application to supplement or amend certain non-essential elements of a legislative act), it would be useful for the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission to reach an understanding on standard language which would be inserted into legislative proposals (Article 290 TFEU). It would also be useful if the Commission could explain how it intends to proceed on the preparation of draft delegated acts.

As regards implementing acts (i.e. acts conferring implementing powers on the Commission, or in some cases, on the Council), all three institutions should reach agreement on the Commission's forthcoming proposal on the control of implementing powers conferred on the Commission (Article 291 TFEU).


2. Transition to co-decision


As a result of the entry into force of the Treaty of Lisbon, the procedure for adopting legislative acts will change in a certain number of areas. In order to ensure that legislative activity is not unduly disrupted as a consequence of the transition to the new Treaty, the European Parliament and the Council could agree that when the European Parliament has already delivered its opinion, it will be considered as a first reading under co-decision.


3. Committee structures in the area of JHA (Article 71 TFEU)


Delegations reached agreement on the draft decision setting up the Standing Committee on operational cooperation on internal security (COSI) (doc. n° 14785/09) which will have to be adopted after entry into force of the Treaty of Lisbon.

As for the overall working structure in the field of Justice and Home Affairs, delegations agreed that the Committee of the Article Thirty Six (CATS) and the Strategic Committee on Immigration, Frontiers and Asylum (SCIFA) should continue to meet until the end of 2011. Before that time, the necessity of having CATS and SCIFA should be re-evaluated by COREPER, taking into account the efficiency and coherence of Council working structures. In the meantime, CATS and SCIFA should focus their discussions on strategic issues where COSI would not be able to contribute and meet as necessary. The Committees could be involved, when deemed appropriate, in legislative work. COREPER remains solely responsible for preparing legislative acts.

Delegations discussed also a review of the other JHA working structures. Further work is needed on this issue.

The outcome of these discussions will serve as the basis for the future decision on JHA working structures in accordance with Article 19 of the Rules of Procedure of the Council.


4. Budget Procedure


Work is well advanced within the Council on a number of issues which need to be addressed as a matter of urgency in order to allow for the smooth entry into force of the Treaty. These cover in particular : amending budgets, transfers of appropriations, provisional twelfths, pragmatic calendar. Discussions with the European Parliament on these issues are on-going in order to reach an agreement during the Conciliation meeting of November 2009 at the latest.

Discussions among delegations are ongoing on other issues, such as the rules of procedure of the Conciliation Committee. Close contacts with the European Parliament are undertaken also in this respect.


5. Rules of Procedure of the Council (Article 240 TFEU)


On the basis that the Council's Rules of Procedure should only be modified to the extent that this was needed as a result of the entry into force of the Treaty of Lisbon, delegations reached broad agreement on most of the provisions of the preliminary draft amendments to the Council's Rules of Procedure as presented by the Presidency. (doc. n° 14853/09).


6. Rules of Procedure of European Council (Article 235 TFEU)


On the basis of the discussions that took place under the Slovene Presidency, delegations had a preliminary exchange of views on the new elements of draft Rules of Procedure of the European Council. Work on this issue will be continued with a view to its rapid finalisation.


7. Notification regarding Article 1, third subparagraph, of the TEU


The Treaty of Lisbon provides that "The Union shall replace and succeed the European Community". It will be necessary to inform third States and international organisations of this legal succession which will be effective at the time of the entry into force of the Treaty. Delegations reached broad agreement on a draft letter which would be sent for this purpose (doc. n° 14784/09). As regards Union Delegations, this draft letter will be adjusted in line with the Presidency report on the European External Action Service (doc. n°14930/09).


8. Chairmanship of preparatory bodies in the area of External Relations (Declaration n° 9)


Delegations discussed the principles for chairmanship of preparatory bodies in the area of external relations on the basis of a categorisation of working parties. The details of the arrangements proposed by the Presidency are set out in doc. n° 14852/09.


9. European External Action Service (Article 27 (3) TEU and Declaration n° 15 of the 2007 IGC)


Delegations agreed on the report (doc. n° 14930/09), which could serve as European Council
guidelines for the High Representative in the preparation of the draft Council decision on the
organisation and functioning of the EEAS.


***





Ahead of the European Council 10 to 11 December, the Swedish presidency of the EU Council could make an effort to communicate drafts and proposals in a comprehensive manner, including questions outside the October progress report.




Ralf Grahn



P.S. Do you find EUSSR myths fascinating? Are we EU citizens worth a better European Union? Read some or all of the 481 Euroblogs aggregated on multilingual Bloggingportal.eu. On most of the blogs you can comment and discuss our common European future.

EU Lisbon Treaty implementation: Preparatory work

Moving to the Lisbon Treaty entails a number of implementing decisions, and for a long time this blog has called for transparent preparation and open discussion about the political and legal aspects of putting the reform treaty into practice. The legality of the “caretaker” Commission has been questioned, but I have seen no clarification in this regard.



After the Slovenian EU Council presidency, there was an extended period of silence from the Council (and the Commission) regarding preparatory work, with the exception of a few “ad hoc” decisions on urgent matters. Earlier today, I found practically nothing on the web pages of the Swedish Council presidency indicating efforts to clarify the issues.

Therefore, we have to surf to the Council’s web pages to look for suitable documents.


October European Council conclusions




The presidency conclusions of the European Council 29 to 30 October 2009 (document 15265/09) had this to say about the implementation of the Lisbon Treaty (point 3, page 2):

“The European Council takes note of the preparatory work in view of the entry into force of the Lisbon Treaty (doc. 14928/09). It endorses the Presidency's report on guidelines for the European External Action Service (doc. 14930/09) and invites the future High Representative to present a proposal for the organisation and functioning of the EEAS as soon as possible after the entry into force of the Lisbon Treaty with a view to its adoption by the Council at the latest by the end of April 2010. In this context, it also recognises the need, as underlined in the European Security Strategy, for the European Union to become more capable, more coherent and more strategic as a global actor, including in its relations with strategic partners, in its neighbourhood and in conflict-affected areas.”

At this stage, the one sentence by European Council only takes note of the general preparatory work.


***


December European Council



Institutional issues pertaining to the entry into force of the Lisbon Treaty are on the preliminary agenda of the European Council 10 and 11 December 2009 (document 15525/09), but with no added substantive information.






The conclusions of the general affairs and external relations council formation (GAERC), dealing with general affairs, 16 November 2009 (document 15913/09) referred to the upcoming Council meetings on 7 and 8 December 2009 preparing for the European Council on 10 to 11 December 2009, but added nothing of substance.


***


Hopefully, a more complete picture emerges during the coming days in addition to the 23 October 2009 progress report we mentioned above.



Ralf Grahn



P.S. Do you find EUSSR myths fascinating? Are we EU citizens worth a better European Union? Read some or all of the 481 Euroblogs aggregated on multilingual Bloggingportal.eu. On most of them you can comment and discuss our common European future.

Preparing for the Lisbon Treaty

It is hard to distinguish which anti-intellectual and anti-European arguments are most absurd, but one of the more insidious ones is the alleged anti-democratic nature of preparation for the possible entry into force of the Treaty of Lisbon.

The Lisbon Treaty was agreed between 27 governments, and it has been approved by 26 national parliaments. The Irish government is going to arrange a second referendum, based on the guarantees it has received from its European partners.

The treaty is dead only for those who despise representative democracy (although it takes place at the national instead of the European level).

The Lisbon Treaty enters into force on the first day of the month following the deposition of the last ratification instrument.

In other words, if the institutions wait until the deposition of the last ratification, there is no chance for them to prepare the necessary decisions to put the Lisbon Treaty into practice in time.

It would be irresponsible to wait, but the Council and the Commission have been cowardly enough to stop preparatory work, at least in public.

This is a loss for open and transparent debate about the implementing issues.

The European Parliament has shown more sense of responsibility, laying down its views in votes on five reports last week.

***

The protracted ratification processes have already caused problems with regard to the nomination of the Commission President and the Commissioners as well as the number of MEPs to be elected.

Some writers have attacked the training of the European External Action Service (EEAS) ahead of the possible entry into force of the Lisbon Treaty. Do they prefer an incoherent European Union in world affairs, with untrained representatives and less security for EU citizens?

Contrary to what the critics say, the EU institutions and the member states should not only take responsibility, but act and argue openly.

They should clearly state the near total ratification of the Lisbon Treaty, and they should show that they are ready to launch the treaty, if it is finally improved.

Instead of hiding their heads in the sand, they should report on preparatory work, and publish draft proposals, consulting with experts, NGOs and the public.

If EU 1.0 diplomats and technocrats do not grasp the nettle of their own accord, EU citizens should remind them of their duties.


Ralf Grahn

Lisbon Treaty implementation: State of play

This is the information Europe Direct has provided today with regard to my questions to the Council and the Commission on preparatory work for the implementation of the Treaty of Lisbon:


“In reply to your questions please note the following information provided by the Secretariat General of the European Commission:


a) Preparatory work on the implementation of the Lisbon Treaty


- Council & European Council

" On 13 June 2008, the Slovenian Presidency circulated a progress report on preparatory work in view of the entry into force of the Lisbon Treaty. This report gives an overview of the work undertaken under the chairmanship of the Slovenian Presidency, recalling that no decision can be taken whilst the ratification process is still underway.

" The European Council took note of this progress report, which briefly summarises discussions of Permanent Representatives on a number of implementation issues: citizens' initiative, data protection, advocates-general, consultative panel for nomination of judges, delegated and implementing acts, transition to co-decision, committee structures in the area of Justice and Home Affairs, budget for 2009 and budget procedure, inter-institutional programming, rules of procedure of European Council and Council, European External Action Service, chairmanship of preparatory bodies in the area of external relations, and issues relating to the General Affairs Council.


- European Commission

" The European Commission has been taking part in Coreper/Council discussions on preparatory work. It has also undertaken its own internal reflection on a number of issues, especially where new initiatives of the Commission are required, such as the Citizens' Initiative or the framework regulation on implementing acts. President Barroso has presented the Commission's approach on implementation issues and more particularly institutional and external relations aspects in April 2008.

" The Commission has always paid careful attention to the balance between the need to avoid seeming to anticipate a Treaty still in the process of ratification, and prudent preparation for the scenario of its implementation. After the Irish no-vote, the preparatory work has been out somewhat on hold.


- European Parliament

" The European Parliament has been working on several reports, mainly:

• Dehaene (PPE-DE/BE) report on the impact of the Lisbon Treaty on the development of the institutional balance in the EU
•
• Leinen (PSE/DE) report on the Parliament's new role and responsibilities implementing the Treaty of Lisbon
•
• Brok (PPE-DE/DE) report on the institutional aspects of creating a European service for external action
•
• Brok (PPE-DE/DE) report on the development of the relations between the European Parliament and the national parliaments under the Lisbon Treaty
•
• Guy-Quint (PSE/FR) report on the financial and budgetary aspects of the Lisbon Treaty
•
• Corbett (PSE/UK) report on the general review of the Rules of Procedure
•
• Kaufmann (GUE-NGL/DE) report on the implementation of the European Citizens' initiative
•
• Grabowska (PSE/PL) report on the perspectives for developing the civil dialogue under the Lisbon Treaty
•
• Wielowieyski (ex-Geremek) (ALDE/PL) report on communicating on and gaining the citizens' support for the Treaty of Lisbon
•

" For information on the content of these reports and the state of play, please consult the Website of the European Parliament : http://www.europarl.europa.eu/news/public/default_en.htm



b) and c) Coming changes to the Commission's Rules of Procedure and planned interinstitutional agreements

Changes and plans not available for the moment.

We hope the above information will be of help to you.

With kind regards,
EUROPE DIRECT Contact Centre”


***

Comments

I am grateful for the reply. A few comments about the substance of the information provided.


***

European Council and Council

As we see, no new information has been disclosed about preparations within the European Council and the Council after the Slovenian report to the June 2008 European Council.

These have been presented and discussed on this blog, as have later conclusions and declarations of the European Council concerning limited aspects.

There is no new substance about work in progress.


***

Commission

The Commission does not deny discussing and reflecting, but it offers nothing of substance. Is it prudent to exclude public discussion?


***

European Parliament

The European Parliament is the only institution, which has shown willingness to prepare its views publicly (but only a few days ago it was reported that the EP is going to put the work on hold). The European Parliament should press ahead in order to adopt resolutions.

The Dehaene, Leinen, Brok (on parliaments) and Corbett reports have been presented on this blog, as well as the Duff report on the European elections.


This blog will gladly turn to the reports on budgetary matters (Guy-Quint and Böge), when it advances to the financial provisions. But they may be of interest to readers before that.


The Kaufmann, Grabowska and Wielowieyski deal with matters, which are of interest to citizens and MEP candidates. These issues may reappear again during our continued progress through the Treaty of Lisbon, although various aspects of these questions have been discussed earlier.


***

Rules of Procedure

The Commission gave no information about its Rules of Procedure or planned interinstitutional agreements.

Nothing was mentioned with regard to the Council, which needs to amend its Rules of Procedure, or about the European Council, which needs new ones. Neither were interinstitutional agreements mentioned.


***

All in all, with the possible exception of the European Parliament (until a few days ago), the EU institutions seem to more inclined to adopt ‘omertà’ than to encourage public discussion.

Yes, the reply was instructive in that regard.



Ralf Grahn

European Council: Members and tasks

We turn to the composition and the tasks of the European Council as laid down in the existing treaties and the European Union’s Treaty of Lisbon.


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Current treaty

Article 4 of the existing Treaty on European Union (TEU) lays down the tasks and the composition of the European Council (in the latest consolidated version of the treaties, OJEU 29.12.2006 C 321 E/12).

The words impetus and guidelines indicate the guiding role of the European Council. The public guidance is summed up in a consensus paper, the Presidency Conclusions formally issued by the member state holding the Council Presidency.

The results are reported to the European Parliament after each meeting by the Council Presidency.

In principle, there is one member from each member state, either the head of state (France and perhaps some other member states with a presidential system) or more commonly the head of government (prime minister).

In some countries the relations are ambiguous or at least contested. Thus, there have been public spats between the president and prime minister of Poland.

Finland is one example of an ambiguous relationship, where the president wants to hold on to a leadership role in foreign policy while the government is responsible for EU affairs. This has led to situations described as the problem of “two plates” (at the dinners). Meanwhile the foreign minister has been exiled from the meeting room.


Article 4 TEU

The European Council shall provide the Union with the necessary impetus for its development and shall define the general political guidelines thereof.

The European Council shall bring together the Heads of State or Government of the Member States and the President of the Commission. They shall be assisted by the Ministers for Foreign Affairs of the Member States and by a Member of the Commission. The European Council shall meet at least twice a year, under the chairmanship of the Head of State or Government of the Member State which holds the Presidency of the Council.

The European Council shall submit to the European Parliament a report after each of its meetings and a yearly written report on the progress achieved by the Union.


***

Lisbon Treaty

Article 13 of the Treaty on European Union (TEU), as amended by the Lisbon Treaty, would elevate the European Council to the role of an official EU institution, and Article 15 TEU builds on this to give more detailed provisions on this institution.

Still the European Council does not exercise legislative function, but it makes binding decisions on a number of issues.

The basic membership remains the same, although the President is added to the Commission President (both without votes). The second paragraph clarifies that the High Representative participates in the meetings.

Four regular meetings annually (twice every six months) codifies existing practice, where the current treaty says ‘twice a year’.

The real novelties are in paragraphs 5 and 6: the elected President of the European Council (not of the European Union). The office has been unanimously agreed, but the role of the future President is contested.

Here is the text of Article 15 TEU, as presented in the consolidated version of the Lisbon Treaty (OJEU 9.5.2008 C 115/23):


Article 15 TEU

1. The European Council shall provide the Union with the necessary impetus for its development and shall define the general political directions and priorities thereof. It shall not exercise legislative functions.

2. The European Council shall consist of the Heads of State or Government of the Member States, together with its President and the President of the Commission. The High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy shall take part in its work.

3. The European Council shall meet twice every six months, convened by its President. When the agenda so requires, the members of the European Council may decide each to be assisted by a minister and, in the case of the President of the Commission, by a member of the Commission. When the situation so requires, the President shall convene a special meeting of the European Council.

4. Except where the Treaties provide otherwise, decisions of the European Council shall be taken by consensus.

5. The European Council shall elect its President, by a qualified majority, for a term of two and a half years, renewable once. In the event of an impediment or serious misconduct, the European Council can end the President's term of office in accordance with the same procedure.

6. The President of the European Council:

(a) shall chair it and drive forward its work;

(b) shall ensure the preparation and continuity of the work of the European Council in cooperation with the President of the Commission, and on the basis of the work of the General Affairs Council;

(c) shall endeavour to facilitate cohesion and consensus within the European Council;

(d) shall present a report to the European Parliament after each of the meetings of the European Council.

The President of the European Council shall, at his level and in that capacity, ensure the external representation of the Union on issues concerning its common foreign and security policy, without prejudice to the powers of the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy.

The President of the European Council shall not hold a national office.

***

Lisbon Treaty implementation

Preparatory work is needed in case the Treaty of Lisbon enters into force. The role and the perquisites of the President of the European Council need to be hammered out.

Progress reports and (alternative) draft proposals are eagerly awaited.


Ralf Grahn

Implementing the Lisbon Treaty: European Parliament

The Committee on Constitutional Affairs of the European Parliament (AFCO) voted Monday 9 March 2009 on three reports we have written about in earlier blog posts, namely the Dehaene report on institutional balance, the Leinen report on the EP’s new role implementing the Lisbon Treaty and the Brok report on relations between the European Parliament and the national parliaments.

Fortunately at least the European Parliament is showing interest in the Lisbon Treaty issues requiring implementation, if the amending treaty enters into force.

At this moment we have no comparable indications on preparatory work from the Commission or the Council.


Ralf Grahn

European Parliament: Hearing the European Council

The Treaty of Lisbon would formally make the European Council into one of the institutions of the European Union. Article 13 of the amended Treaty on European Union (TEU) mentions the European Council right after the European Parliament, and Article 15 TEU contains the main provisions on its tasks, membership and President.


This leads to other changes at treaty level and below.


***


Current treaty


The fourth paragraph of Article 197 of the Treaty establishing the European Community (TEC) lays down the principle that the European Parliament can hear the Council (which has both legislative and executive powers), but it does not mention the European Council:


“The Council shall be heard by the European Parliament in accordance with the conditions laid down by the Council in its Rules of Procedure.”


***


Lisbon Treaty


The corresponding provision of the Treaty of Lisbon is the third paragraph of Article 230 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU). The Council and its Rules of Procedure remain as before, but the European Council and its Rules of Procedure are added:

“The European Council and the Council shall be heard by the European Parliament in accordance with the conditions laid down in the Rules of Procedure of the European Council and those of the Council.”


***


New Rules of Procedure


In practice, the head of government (or state) of and incoming Council Presidency presents the work programme before the European Parliament and then lauds the achievements during the six months at the helm before handing over the Presidency to the next member state.

Article 230 TFEU means that the European Council needs its own Rules of Procedure. Reporting from the meetings will become the task of the semi-permanent President, according to Article 15(6) TEU.

Preparatory work is needed to implement the Lisbon Treaty, should it enter into force.


***

Council information

The only more or less comprehensive public EU report emanating from the Council on preparatory work seems to be almost nine months old.

It is the ‘Progress report from the Presidency to the European Council ─ Preparatory work in view of the entry into force of the Lisbon Treaty’ from the Slovenian Council Presidency to the European Council 19 and 20 June 2008 (Council document 10650/08, 13 June 2008):

http://register.consilium.europa.eu/pdf/en/08/st10/st10650.en08.pdf


The Progress Report, which sampled a number of questions from Slovenia’s earlier and unpublished list, noted that a number of issues related to the entry into force of the Lisbon Treaty will require some form of agreement with the European Parliament (point 4).

Point 11 summarised the work undertaken on the Council’s and the European Council’s Rules of Procedure:


11. Rules of Procedure of European Council and Council (Articles 235 and 240 TFEU)

On the basis that the Council's Rules of Procedure should only be modified to the extent that this was needed as a result of the entry into force of the Lisbon Treaty, Permanent Representatives examined possible amendments to the existing Rules. Broad consensus was reached, subject to the inclusion of several provisions related to the division of labour between the GAC and the FAC and the preparation of European Council meetings, which it was agreed would be examined at a later stage.

Considerable progress was made on technical aspects of the European Council's Rules of Procedure; some other issues, related in particular to the preparation of European Council meetings, will require further work. A preliminary exchange of views focussed on the respective roles of those involved in the preparation of European Council meetings. There was broad support for the need for all of them to work closely together. A significant number of delegations underlined the need to ensure an adequate role in European Council meetings for the Head of State or Government of the Member State holding the Council presidency. These issues will require further work.


***


Preparatory work, progress reports and draft proposals are needed.


Ralf Grahn

European Parliament: Relations with Council and European Council

The existing treaties of the European Union and the EU Treaty of Lisbon contain basic provisions on the European Parliament’s relations with the other institutions: the Commission and the Council.


In this blog post we present the current and amending treaties before we embark upon the relations between the institutions in more detail.


We notice that the Treaty of Lisbon requires preparatory work in order to be implemented, should it enter into force.




***

Current treaty

Article 197 of the Treaty establishing the European Community (TEC) contains bare bones provisions on two areas concerning the European Parliament:

a) internal organisation, and
b) relations with the Commission and the Council.

The text of Article 197 TEC is from the latest consolidated version of the treaties, published in the Official Journal of the European Union (OJEU) 29.12.2006 C 321 E/134. Having covered the first three paragraphs in some detail in preceding blog posts, we are going to turn our main attention to the fourth one, which concerns the relations with the EU Council:


Article 197 TEC

The European Parliament shall elect its President and its officers from among its Members.

Members of the Commission may attend all meetings and shall, at their request, be heard on behalf of the Commission.

The Commission shall reply orally or in writing to questions put to it by the European Parliament or by its Members.

The Council shall be heard by the European Parliament in accordance with the conditions laid down by the Council in its Rules of Procedure.


***

Original Lisbon Treaty (ToL)

Article 2, point 185 of the original Treaty of Lisbon formally deleted the first paragraph of Article 197 TEC on the internal organisation of the European Parliament and replaced two of the three other paragraphs. Notice the wording of the new fourth paragraph (OJEU 17.12.2007 C 306/102):


185) Article 197 shall be amended as follows:

(a) the first paragraph shall be deleted;

(b) the second paragraph shall be replaced by the following:

‘The Commission may attend all the meetings and shall, at its request, be heard.’;

(c) the fourth paragraph shall be replaced by the following:

‘The European Council and the Council shall be heard by the European Parliament in accordance with the conditions laid down in the Rules of Procedure of the European Council and those of the Council.’.


***




Consolidated Lisbon Treaty


The European Parliament’s relations with the Commission and the Council remained in slightly amended form in Article 197 (ToL), which was renumbered Article 230 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) in the consolidated Lisbon Treaty (OJEU OJEU 9.5.2008 C 115/151).

Because the first paragraph of Article 197 TEC had been formally deleted, but in practice moved to Article 14(4) of the Treaty on European Union (TEU), the replacement for the fourth paragraph of Article 197 TEC became the third paragraph of Article 230 TFUE, with the new wording:


Article 230 TFEU
(ex Article 197, second, third and fourth paragraph, TEC)

The Commission may attend all the meetings and shall, at its request, be heard.

The Commission shall reply orally or in writing to questions put to it by the European Parliament or by its Members.

The European Council and the Council shall be heard by the European Parliament in accordance with the conditions laid down in the Rules of Procedure of the European Council and those of the Council.


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Lisbon Treaty changes

The third paragraph of Article 230 TFEU makes the treaty level addition that the European Council is heard by the EP. This is a codification of existing practice, but it does not exclude further developments.

If the Lisbon Treaty enters into force, the European Council becomes an official institution and it needs its own Rules of Procedure, replacing the meagre Rules for the organisation of the proceedings of the European Council.

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We take note that the Lisbon Treaty requires a number of complementary rules and decisions, if it enters into force. Some of these are only technical, but necessary. Others are political in nature. All require preparatory work.

Two documents are crucial, either as instruments of change or in order to adapt to separate decisions:

The Rules of Procedure of the EU Council would have to be adapted to the amending treaty.

The European Council needs its own Rules of Procedure.

We are left wondering what the French Council Presidency did during the latter half of 2008 and what the Czech Council Presidency is doing during the first six months of 2009.


Ralf Grahn

Lisbon Treaty ratification (Ireland)

This blog is not the only one to wonder at the lack of information about preparatory work concerning the ratification and implementation of the European Union’s Treaty of Lisbon.

On 25 February 2009 the EU Committee of the Finnish Government discussed a memorandum on the state of play since the December 2008 European Council (Lissabonin sopimus ─ Eteneminen joulukuun 2008 Eurooppa-neuvoston jälkeen ─ Tilannekatsaus). The memo is available only in Finnish, but available to the public here:

http://www.valtioneuvosto.fi/tiedostot/julkinen/eu-briefit/2009/20090225/lissabon-jatko.pdf


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Ireland

The Irish ratification issues are mainly descriptive, with few dramatic positions.

The 7 page paper, which primarily serves the purpose to keep the Parliament informed, starts by stating the well known facts about the ratification of the Lisbon Treaty. It has been approved by 25 national parliaments and EU 23 member states have deposited their ratification instruments. The four missing depositions are those of Ireland, as well as Poland, Germany and the Czech Republic.

The memo presents the commitments of the Irish Government to arrange a second referendum during 2009 and of the member states to offer Ireland assurances with regard to Irish demands.

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Irish demands

The Prime Minister’s EU Secretariat sees legally binding assurances (a protocol) as a problem, because only a solution which excludes a new round of ratifications can garner unanimous support. However, certain matters can be formalised later at treaty level after the Lisbon Treaty has entered into force, for instance as part of an accession treaty. The memorandum refers to the political agreements concluded among the member states in 1992 with regard to the Maastricht or EU Treaty and Denmark, included in the 1997 Amsterdam Treaty.

Other important issues evoked by Ireland (cf. Annex to European Council conclusions) might be included in a declaration.

If a satisfactory conclusion can be reached during the first half of this year, the Irish Government has undertaken to arrange a new referendum by the end of October 2009.

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In a separate post we are going to look at the (lack of preparation of) Lisbon Treaty implementation issues.


Ralf Grahn

EU Law: Humanitarian aid & Lisbon Treaty implementation

The European Community (European Union) is an important actor on the world stage as a donor of humanitarian aid, but legally these measures are taken on the basis of Title XX on development cooperation of the Treaty establishing the European Community (TEC).

In principle, development cooperation is geared towards long term programmes and solutions. Humanitarian aid needs often arise suddenly, following armed conflicts, droughts or natural disasters, although sadly the need for humanitarian aid can continue for ages if the causes cannot be solved, with many refugee situations as a reminder.

The Lisbon Treaty would give humanitarian aid a new legal base and it would lead to the establishment of a European Voluntary Humanitarian Aid Corps (EVHAC).

We look at the history and contents of the new provision on humanitarian aid.

The possible entry into force of the Treaty of Lisbon is drawing closer. Preparatory work is needed to put many of the treaty provisions into practice, so the Council should start publishing drafts and reports for public debate. The Commission could set a good example in preparing implementation in its areas of competence.


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European Convention

Against this background the European Convention proposed a new Section 3 on humanitarian aid with an Article III-223 as the specific legal base for ad hoc assistance, relief and protection for people in third countries and victims of natural or man-made disasters, in order to meet the humanitarian needs resulting from these different situations (OJEU 18.7.2003 C 1169/72).


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Constitutional Treaty

The intergovernmental conference (IGC 2004) adopted the proposal by the Convention in Article III-321 of the Treaty establishing a Constitution for Europe (OJEU 16.12.2004 C 310).


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Original Lisbon Treaty

The intergovernmental conference (IGC 2007) took over the provision of the Constitutional Treaty in the form of an amendment to the TEC. Article 2 , point 168 of the original Treaty of Lisbon (ToL) inserted a new Chapter 3 and a new Article 188j into the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (OJEU 17.12.2007 C 306/95–96):


HUMANITARIAN AID

168) The following new Chapter 3 and new Article 188 J shall be inserted:

‘CHAPTER 3
HUMANITARIAN AID

Article 188 J

1. The Union's operations in the field of humanitarian aid shall be conducted within the framework of the principles and objectives of the external action of the Union. Such operations shall be intended to provide ad hoc assistance and relief and protection for people in third countries who are victims of natural or man-made disasters, in order to meet the humanitarian needs resulting from these different situations. The Union's measures and those of the Member States shall complement and reinforce each other.

2. Humanitarian aid operations shall be conducted in compliance with the principles of international law and with the principles of impartiality, neutrality and non-discrimination.

3. The European Parliament and the Council, acting in accordance with the ordinary legislative procedure, shall establish the measures defining the framework within which the Union's humanitarian aid operations shall be implemented.

4. The Union may conclude with third countries and competent international organisations any agreement helping to achieve the objectives referred to in paragraph 1 and in Article 10 A of the Treaty on European Union.

The first subparagraph shall be without prejudice to Member States' competence to negotiate in international bodies and to conclude agreements.

5. In order to establish a framework for joint contributions from young Europeans to the humanitarian aid operations of the Union, a European Voluntary Humanitarian Aid Corps shall be set up. The European Parliament and the Council, acting by means of regulations in accordance with the ordinary legislative procedure, shall determine the rules and procedures for the operation of the Corps.

6. The Commission may take any useful initiative to promote coordination between actions of the Union and those of the Member States, in order to enhance the efficiency and complementarity of Union and national humanitarian aid measures.

7. The Union shall ensure that its humanitarian aid operations are coordinated and consistent with those of international organisations and bodies, in particular those forming part of the United Nations system.’.


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Consolidated Lisbon Treaty

Because of the small variations, I left the fairly long texts of the draft Constitution and the Constitutional Treaty for interested readers to fetch on their own, but because the consolidated Treaty of Lisbon is the final version in a manner of speaking, the reference if the treaty enters into force, I present it here with the Article and certain references renumbered (OJEU 9.5.2008 c 115/143):


CHAPTER 3
HUMANITARIAN AID

Article 214 TFEU

1. The Union's operations in the field of humanitarian aid shall be conducted within the framework of the principles and objectives of the external action of the Union. Such operations shall be intended to provide ad hoc assistance and relief and protection for people in third countries who are victims of natural or man-made disasters, in order to meet the humanitarian needs resulting from these different situations. The Union's measures and those of the Member States shall complement and reinforce each other.

2. Humanitarian aid operations shall be conducted in compliance with the principles of international law and with the principles of impartiality, neutrality and non-discrimination.

3. The European Parliament and the Council, acting in accordance with the ordinary legislative procedure, shall establish the measures defining the framework within which the Union's humanitarian aid operations shall be implemented.

4. The Union may conclude with third countries and competent international organisations any agreement helping to achieve the objectives referred to in paragraph 1 and in Article 21 of the Treaty on European Union.

The first subparagraph shall be without prejudice to Member States' competence to negotiate in international bodies and to conclude agreements.

5. In order to establish a framework for joint contributions from young Europeans to the humanitarian aid operations of the Union, a European Voluntary Humanitarian Aid Corps shall be set up. The European Parliament and the Council, acting by means of regulations in accordance with the ordinary legislative procedure, shall determine the rules and procedures for the operation of the Corps.

6. The Commission may take any useful initiative to promote coordination between actions of the Union and those of the Member States, in order to enhance the efficiency and complementarity of Union and national humanitarian aid measures.

7. The Union shall ensure that its humanitarian aid operations are coordinated and consistent with those of international organisations and bodies, in particular those forming part of the United Nations system.


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Comments

The new Article on humanitarian aid would give the European Union a distinct legal base.

The guiding principles for humanitarian aid would be the same as for the European Union’s external action in general, found in Chapter 1 of Title V of the amended Treaty on European Union (Articles 21 and 22).

Specifically, humanitarian aid actions would be guided by international law, impartiality, neutrality and non-discrimination 8paragraph 2).

The legal framework for humanitarian aid would still be taken according to the co-decision procedure, renamed the ordinary legislative procedure.

The net has been cast wide with regard to international agreements.

The European Voluntary Humanitarian Aid Corps is clearly aimed at mobilising idealistic young Europeans in aid work.

Coordination between the European Union and the member states is clearly needed because of the shared competence, as are efforts to coordinate with UN and other organisations.

In my view, taking into account the over all length of Article 214 TFEU, it would hardly have been amiss to include a few words on the role of non-governmental organisations (NGO).


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Competence

Along with development cooperation, humanitarian aid belongs to the sub-category shared competence ‘light’ or shared competence ‘minus’ mentioned in Article 4(4) TFEU:

4. In the areas of development cooperation and humanitarian aid, the Union shall have competence to carry out activities and conduct a common policy; however, the exercise of that competence shall not result in Member States being prevented from exercising theirs.


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Summaries of legislation

For summaries of legislation you can turn to the Commission’s Scadplus web page Humanitarian aid, with links to relevant topics:

http://europa.eu/scadplus/leg/en/s05010.htm


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Council Regulation 1257/96

The consolidated version of Council Regulation (EC) No 1257/96 of 20 June 1996 concerning humanitarian aid is found here:

http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=CONSLEG:1996R1257:20031120:EN:PDF


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ECHO

The Commission’s Humanitarian aid department (ECHO) is the source for humanitarian aid action:

http://ec.europa.eu/echo/index_en.htm


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European Voluntary Humanitarian Aid Corps (EVHAC)

As far as I see, the Commission (ECHO) has commissioned a few studies on setting up EVHAC, but the material seems to have been taken down from the ECHO/Commission web pages.

Interested readers may find the studies or references to them from NGOs and research institutions.

If the Treaty of Lisbon enters into force, EVHAC is going to be set up in some form.


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Implementing the Lisbon Treaty

Regardless of different opinions about the Lisbon Treaty, many questions have to be prepared for implementation, should the amending treaty enter into force (as 27 governments have agreed and 25 national parliaments approved).

Most of these issues are driven by the member states (the Council), but there has been a deafening silence for a long time.

Irrespective of the perceived immaturity of public opinion, the Council must start publishing regular and comprehensive updates of its preparatory work, with reasons, for public debate. Only thus can its professed commitment to the principles of transparency and openness.

Where the Commission has a leading role to play in preparing proposals, it should set a good example by preparing and consulting. These proposals should be added as a thematic whole to the web pages about the Treaty of Lisbon, in order to make them visible and easy to find.

EVHAC is one of the questions where the Commission has the role of an initiator.


Ralf Grahn