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The Progress Report, which sampled a number of questions from Slovenia’s earlier and unpublished list, noted that a number of issues related to the entry into force of the Lisbon Treaty will require some form of agreement with the European Parliament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
Showing posts with label 230 TFEU. Show all posts
Showing posts with label 230 TFEU. Show all posts
Wednesday, 11 March 2009
European Parliament: Hearing the Council
The rotating EU Council Presidency still in force is crucial for how the European Union is represented externally and the Council internally, six months at a time. The Treaty of Lisbon would preserve the rotating Presidency generally, but give the European Council a more permanent President and the double-hatted High Representative/Vice-President would chair the Foreign Affairs Council.
Under the Treaty of Lisbon the European Council would become an official institution. This has been noted in the provision on hearing by the European Parliament, but we lack public information about how the member states intend to implement the Lisbon Treaty.
In this post we look at the rules on hearing the Council by the European Parliament.
***
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):
“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. (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.”
***
Council’s Rules of Procedure
It is not for a “sovereign” European Parliament to dictate how the Council is to be heard, but for the Council to decide in its Rules of Procedure (based on various treaty provisions drafted by the representatives of the member states).
As in many other instances, working relationships require cooperation between the EU institutions.
Council Decision 2006/683/EC, Euratom of 15 September 2006 adopting the Council's Rules of Procedure was originally published in the Official Journal of the European Union (OJEU) 16.10.2006 L 285/47.
Each year the Council has to approve the population figures relevant for voting in the Council (Annex 3), and since there is a consolidated version of the Council’s Rules of Procedure (of 1 January 2009) it is the one we use:
http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=CONSLEG:2006D0683:20090101:EN:PDF
***
Representation before the European Parliament
The general rule concerns the acting Council Presidency, the main responsible to be heard by the European Parliament or to delegate the tasks.
Usually the head of government (or state) of the Presidency member state presents its programme at the beginning of the six month turn in office and sums up its achievements at the end.
Article 26 of the Council’s Rules of Procedure assigns this task primarily to the acting Presidency, although there are other options, such as the following Presidency.
The role of the Secretary-General includes the task of High Representative, so keeping the European Parliament informed about CFSP and CSDP developments can be delegated to him (instead of the Foreign Minister of the country holding the Presidency).
At committee level Council officials can also be instructed to appear (instead of the relevant Ministers of the Presidency government). This includes the Deputy Secretary-General, practically unknown to the general public, but with the High Representative/Secretary-General more than occupied by foreign policy, one of the real powers within the EU:
Article 26
Representation before the European Parliament
The Council may be represented before the European Parliament or its committees by the Presidency or, with the latter's agreement, by the following Presidency or by the Secretary-General. The Council may also be represented before those committees by its Deputy Secretary- General or senior officials of the General Secretariat, acting on instructions from the Presidency.
The Council may also present its views to the European Parliament by means of a written statement.
***
Parliamentary questions and silence procedure
The number of questions for written answer (written questions) from members of the European Parliament is great. Preparing draft replies to them is largely routine work for the Council Secretariat, so facilitated procedures have been adopted to ease the work load of Coreper (the Committee of Permanent Representatives) and especially of the Council.
Article 12(2) of the Council’s Rules of Procedure mentions a simplified written procedure called “silence procedure”, applicable to (written) questions and some other matters. If none of the member states react within a time limit (normally three working days), the text is considered adopted:
2. On the initiative of the Presidency, the Council may act by means of a simplified written procedure called “silence procedure”:
(a) for the purpose of adopting the text of a reply to a written question or, as appropriate, to an oral question submitted to the Council by a Member of the European Parliament, after the draft reply has been examined by Coreper [the time limit is normally three working days];
-----
(c) for the purpose of deciding to consult other institutions or bodies wherever such consultation is required by the Treaties;
-----
In that case, the relevant text shall be deemed to be adopted at the end of the period laid down by the Presidency depending on the urgency of the matter, except where a member of the Council objects.
3. The General Secretariat shall establish that the written procedures have been completed.
***
Lisbon Treaty
With regard to hearing the Council Article 230 TFEU does not alter the text of Article 197 TEC. It only adds the European Council and its Rules of Procedure.
The procedures in the European Parliament are regulated in its Rules of Procedure, which the EP plans to amend (Corbett Report). In addition, Lisbon Treaty implementation and interinstitutional relations are dealt with in the Leinen, Brok and Dehaene reports, and they have been covered in a number of blog posts.
But the Council’s Rules of Procedure have to be adapted to the amending Treaty of Lisbon. I have found no public proposal concerning the needed changes.
Ralf Grahn
Under the Treaty of Lisbon the European Council would become an official institution. This has been noted in the provision on hearing by the European Parliament, but we lack public information about how the member states intend to implement the Lisbon Treaty.
In this post we look at the rules on hearing the Council by the European Parliament.
***
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):
“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. (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.”
***
Council’s Rules of Procedure
It is not for a “sovereign” European Parliament to dictate how the Council is to be heard, but for the Council to decide in its Rules of Procedure (based on various treaty provisions drafted by the representatives of the member states).
As in many other instances, working relationships require cooperation between the EU institutions.
Council Decision 2006/683/EC, Euratom of 15 September 2006 adopting the Council's Rules of Procedure was originally published in the Official Journal of the European Union (OJEU) 16.10.2006 L 285/47.
Each year the Council has to approve the population figures relevant for voting in the Council (Annex 3), and since there is a consolidated version of the Council’s Rules of Procedure (of 1 January 2009) it is the one we use:
http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=CONSLEG:2006D0683:20090101:EN:PDF
***
Representation before the European Parliament
The general rule concerns the acting Council Presidency, the main responsible to be heard by the European Parliament or to delegate the tasks.
Usually the head of government (or state) of the Presidency member state presents its programme at the beginning of the six month turn in office and sums up its achievements at the end.
Article 26 of the Council’s Rules of Procedure assigns this task primarily to the acting Presidency, although there are other options, such as the following Presidency.
The role of the Secretary-General includes the task of High Representative, so keeping the European Parliament informed about CFSP and CSDP developments can be delegated to him (instead of the Foreign Minister of the country holding the Presidency).
At committee level Council officials can also be instructed to appear (instead of the relevant Ministers of the Presidency government). This includes the Deputy Secretary-General, practically unknown to the general public, but with the High Representative/Secretary-General more than occupied by foreign policy, one of the real powers within the EU:
Article 26
Representation before the European Parliament
The Council may be represented before the European Parliament or its committees by the Presidency or, with the latter's agreement, by the following Presidency or by the Secretary-General. The Council may also be represented before those committees by its Deputy Secretary- General or senior officials of the General Secretariat, acting on instructions from the Presidency.
The Council may also present its views to the European Parliament by means of a written statement.
***
Parliamentary questions and silence procedure
The number of questions for written answer (written questions) from members of the European Parliament is great. Preparing draft replies to them is largely routine work for the Council Secretariat, so facilitated procedures have been adopted to ease the work load of Coreper (the Committee of Permanent Representatives) and especially of the Council.
Article 12(2) of the Council’s Rules of Procedure mentions a simplified written procedure called “silence procedure”, applicable to (written) questions and some other matters. If none of the member states react within a time limit (normally three working days), the text is considered adopted:
2. On the initiative of the Presidency, the Council may act by means of a simplified written procedure called “silence procedure”:
(a) for the purpose of adopting the text of a reply to a written question or, as appropriate, to an oral question submitted to the Council by a Member of the European Parliament, after the draft reply has been examined by Coreper [the time limit is normally three working days];
-----
(c) for the purpose of deciding to consult other institutions or bodies wherever such consultation is required by the Treaties;
-----
In that case, the relevant text shall be deemed to be adopted at the end of the period laid down by the Presidency depending on the urgency of the matter, except where a member of the Council objects.
3. The General Secretariat shall establish that the written procedures have been completed.
***
Lisbon Treaty
With regard to hearing the Council Article 230 TFEU does not alter the text of Article 197 TEC. It only adds the European Council and its Rules of Procedure.
The procedures in the European Parliament are regulated in its Rules of Procedure, which the EP plans to amend (Corbett Report). In addition, Lisbon Treaty implementation and interinstitutional relations are dealt with in the Leinen, Brok and Dehaene reports, and they have been covered in a number of blog posts.
But the Council’s Rules of Procedure have to be adapted to the amending Treaty of Lisbon. I have found no public proposal concerning the needed changes.
Ralf Grahn
Tuesday, 10 March 2009
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.
***
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.
***
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
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.
***
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.
***
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
Monday, 9 March 2009
European Parliament: Questions for written answer
Question Time and Questions for oral answer with debate may be more “media sexy”, but Questions for written answer offer individual members of the European Parliament more freedom to query the Commission or the Council.
The number of “written questions” is high, but with patience you may find valuable nuggets of information about interesting details not readily available elsewhere.
***
Treaty provisions
“The Commission shall reply orally or in writing to questions put to it by the European Parliament or by its Members.”
This is the text of the third paragraph of Article 197 of the current Treaty establishing the European Community (TEC), published in the consolidated version of the treaties OJEU 29.12.2006 C 321 E/134.
Its substance would not be affected by Article 2, point 185 of the original Treaty of Lisbon (OJEU 17.12.2007 C 306/102).
Article 197 (ToL) appears renumbered as Article 230 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) in the consolidated Lisbon Treaty, with the same wording of the second paragraph (OJEU 9.5.2008/151).
***
EP Rules of Procedure
Naturally, more detailed rules are needed to complement or implement treaty provisions. The general resource concerning procedures in the European Parliament is the Rules of Procedure (16th edition, October 2008).
Rule 110 concerns questions for written answer to the Council or the Commission. Each member can table one priority question each month, to be answered within three weeks. Non-priority questions should be answered within six weeks, but the Rule does not limit their number. The questions and answers are published:
Rule 110 Questions for written answer to the Council or the Commission
1. Any Member may put questions for written answer to the Council or the Commission in accordance with guidelines laid down in an annex to these Rules of Procedure. The content of questions shall be the sole responsibility of their authors.
2. Questions shall be submitted in writing to the President who shall forward them to the institution concerned. Doubts concerning the admissibility of a question shall be settled by the President. His decision shall be notified to the questioner.
3. If a question cannot be answered within the time limit set it shall, at the request of the author, be placed on the agenda of the next meeting of the committee responsible. Rule 109 shall apply mutatis mutandis.
4. Questions which require an immediate answer but not detailed research (priority questions) shall be answered within three weeks of being forwarded to the institution concerned. Each Member may table one priority question each month.
Other questions (non-priority questions) shall be answered within six weeks of being forwarded to the institution concerned.
Members shall indicate which type of question they are submitting. The final decision shall be taken by the President.
5. Questions and answers shall be published in the Official Journal of the European Union.
***
Guidelines: Annex IIa
More detailed rules are laid down in Annex IIa. While Rule 110 concerns questions to the Council or the Commission, the reference to Rule 111 is with regard to questions to the European Central Bank.
The guidelines set fairly basic norms for the relevance and language of an admissible question, if need be with advice on drafting. In addition, the guidelines try to avoid burdening the Commission and the Council with repetitive answers to essentially the same question or when the information is readily available. The Commission or Council can bundle answers on related matters:
ANNEX II a Guidelines for questions for written answer under Rules 110 and 111
1. Questions for written answer shall:
- fall within the competence and sphere of responsibility of the institution concerned and be of general interest;
- be concise and contain an understandable interrogation;
- not contain offensive language;
- not relate to strictly personal matters.
2. [In effect after the 2009 European elections] If a question does not comply with these guidelines, the Secretariat shall provide the author with advice on how the question may be drafted in order to be admissible.
3. [In effect after the 2009 European elections] If an identical or similar question has been put and answered during the preceding six months, the Secretariat shall transmit a copy of the previous question and answer to the author. The renewed question shall not be forwarded to the institution concerned unless the author invokes new significant developments or is seeking further information.
4. If a question seeks factual or statistical information that is already available to Parliament's library, the latter shall inform the Member, who may withdraw the question.
5. Questions concerning related matters may be answered together.
***
Written questions
Just as questions for oral answers with debate become “oral questions” in everyday parlance, questions for written answer turn into “written questions” colloquially. In other words, search for “Answers to written question(s)” if you want to know more.
But the search and search options did not feel especially intuitive, so try the European Parliament’s web page Parliamentary questions:
http://www.europarl.europa.eu/QP-WEB/home.jsp?language=en
A cottage industry opens up. The latest written question this year was numbered P-1583/09 and we are little more than two months into 2009 (an election year).
You can access the most recent questions or all the questions for the year. The headlines give an indication of what the questions are about.
You can find the most recent questions with answer, which might give you valuable information about a certain topic. Because of the number of questions and topics you might want to try the search option on the page.
Ralf Grahn
The number of “written questions” is high, but with patience you may find valuable nuggets of information about interesting details not readily available elsewhere.
***
Treaty provisions
“The Commission shall reply orally or in writing to questions put to it by the European Parliament or by its Members.”
This is the text of the third paragraph of Article 197 of the current Treaty establishing the European Community (TEC), published in the consolidated version of the treaties OJEU 29.12.2006 C 321 E/134.
Its substance would not be affected by Article 2, point 185 of the original Treaty of Lisbon (OJEU 17.12.2007 C 306/102).
Article 197 (ToL) appears renumbered as Article 230 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) in the consolidated Lisbon Treaty, with the same wording of the second paragraph (OJEU 9.5.2008/151).
***
EP Rules of Procedure
Naturally, more detailed rules are needed to complement or implement treaty provisions. The general resource concerning procedures in the European Parliament is the Rules of Procedure (16th edition, October 2008).
Rule 110 concerns questions for written answer to the Council or the Commission. Each member can table one priority question each month, to be answered within three weeks. Non-priority questions should be answered within six weeks, but the Rule does not limit their number. The questions and answers are published:
Rule 110 Questions for written answer to the Council or the Commission
1. Any Member may put questions for written answer to the Council or the Commission in accordance with guidelines laid down in an annex to these Rules of Procedure. The content of questions shall be the sole responsibility of their authors.
2. Questions shall be submitted in writing to the President who shall forward them to the institution concerned. Doubts concerning the admissibility of a question shall be settled by the President. His decision shall be notified to the questioner.
3. If a question cannot be answered within the time limit set it shall, at the request of the author, be placed on the agenda of the next meeting of the committee responsible. Rule 109 shall apply mutatis mutandis.
4. Questions which require an immediate answer but not detailed research (priority questions) shall be answered within three weeks of being forwarded to the institution concerned. Each Member may table one priority question each month.
Other questions (non-priority questions) shall be answered within six weeks of being forwarded to the institution concerned.
Members shall indicate which type of question they are submitting. The final decision shall be taken by the President.
5. Questions and answers shall be published in the Official Journal of the European Union.
***
Guidelines: Annex IIa
More detailed rules are laid down in Annex IIa. While Rule 110 concerns questions to the Council or the Commission, the reference to Rule 111 is with regard to questions to the European Central Bank.
The guidelines set fairly basic norms for the relevance and language of an admissible question, if need be with advice on drafting. In addition, the guidelines try to avoid burdening the Commission and the Council with repetitive answers to essentially the same question or when the information is readily available. The Commission or Council can bundle answers on related matters:
ANNEX II a Guidelines for questions for written answer under Rules 110 and 111
1. Questions for written answer shall:
- fall within the competence and sphere of responsibility of the institution concerned and be of general interest;
- be concise and contain an understandable interrogation;
- not contain offensive language;
- not relate to strictly personal matters.
2. [In effect after the 2009 European elections] If a question does not comply with these guidelines, the Secretariat shall provide the author with advice on how the question may be drafted in order to be admissible.
3. [In effect after the 2009 European elections] If an identical or similar question has been put and answered during the preceding six months, the Secretariat shall transmit a copy of the previous question and answer to the author. The renewed question shall not be forwarded to the institution concerned unless the author invokes new significant developments or is seeking further information.
4. If a question seeks factual or statistical information that is already available to Parliament's library, the latter shall inform the Member, who may withdraw the question.
5. Questions concerning related matters may be answered together.
***
Written questions
Just as questions for oral answers with debate become “oral questions” in everyday parlance, questions for written answer turn into “written questions” colloquially. In other words, search for “Answers to written question(s)” if you want to know more.
But the search and search options did not feel especially intuitive, so try the European Parliament’s web page Parliamentary questions:
http://www.europarl.europa.eu/QP-WEB/home.jsp?language=en
A cottage industry opens up. The latest written question this year was numbered P-1583/09 and we are little more than two months into 2009 (an election year).
You can access the most recent questions or all the questions for the year. The headlines give an indication of what the questions are about.
You can find the most recent questions with answer, which might give you valuable information about a certain topic. Because of the number of questions and topics you might want to try the search option on the page.
Ralf Grahn
European Parliament: Question Time
Otto von Bismarck may have been of the opinion that it is better not to see laws and sausages being made, but this blog builds on the assumption that educated and enlightened citizens are crucial for representative democracy to work properly. This includes the European level.
Today we let Jim Hacker guide us on our courageous visit to the Euro sausage factory, where the Question Time brand is made.
For the less hyperbolically inclined: the rules on Question Time in the European Parliament.
***
Treaty provisions
Currently the third paragraph of Article 197 of the Treaty establishing the European Community (TEC) concerns oral and written questions to the Commission.
The text 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:
Article 197 TEC
-----
The Commission shall reply orally or in writing to questions put to it by the European Parliament or by its Members.
-----
***
Original Lisbon Treaty (ToL)
Article 2, point 185 of the original Treaty of Lisbon did not affect Article 197 TEC with regard to questions by the European Parliament or its members to the Commission (OJEU 17.12.2007 C 306/102).
***
Consolidated Lisbon Treaty
Article 197 (ToL) was renumbered Article 230 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) in the consolidated Lisbon Treaty, with the questions to the Commission in the second paragraph (OJEU 9.5.2008/151):
Article 230 TFEU
(ex Article 197, second, third and fourth paragraph, TEC)
-----
The Commission shall reply orally or in writing to questions put to it by the European Parliament or by its Members.
-----
***
EP Rules of Procedure
The existing and future treaty level provisions leave the practical solutions to be sought at a lower level. On the one hand, the Commission has an obligation to reply to parliamentary questions, but as usual the institutions have to find cooperative solutions to make things work. On the other hand, questions in parliament are something the European Parliament has had to develop internally.
Not mentioned directly at treaty level is the fairly high profile event called Question Time, laid down in Rule 109 of the Rules of Procedure of the European Parliament (16th edition, October 2008). Note the powers of the EP President to rule on the admissibility and the order of questions:
Rule 109 Question Time
1. Question Time with the Council and Commission shall be held at each part-session at such times as may be decided by Parliament on a proposal from the Conference of Presidents. A specific period of time may be set aside for questions to the President and individual Members of the Commission.
2. No Member may put more than one question to the Council and the Commission at a given part-session.
3. Questions shall be submitted in writing to the President, who shall rule on their admissibility and on the order in which they are to be taken. The questioner shall be notified immediately of this decision.
4. The detailed procedure shall be governed by guidelines laid down in an annex to these Rules of Procedure.
***
Guidelines
The detailed procedure is laid down in Annex II, with the guidelines in part A. These guidelines serve MEPs drafting questions and the President of the EP ruling on admissibility and order:
ANNEX II Conduct of Question Time under Rule 109
A.Guidelines
1. Questions shall be admissible only where they
- are concise and are drafted so as to permit a brief answer to be given;
- fall within the competence and sphere of responsibility of the Commission and the Council and are of general interest;
- do not require extensive prior study or research by the institution concerned;
- are clearly worded and relate to a specific matter;
- do not contain assertions or opinions;
- do not relate to strictly personal matters;
- are not aimed at procuring documents or statistical information;
- are interrogatory in form.
2. A question shall be inadmissible if the agenda already provides for the subject to be discussed with the participation of the institution concerned.
3. A question shall be inadmissible if an identical or similar question has been put down and answered during the preceding three months unless there are new developments or the author is seeking further information. In the first case a copy of the question and the answer shall be given to the author.
Supplementary questions
4. Each Member may follow up the reply with a supplementary question to any question and may put in all two supplementary questions.
5. Supplementary questions shall be subject to the rules of admissibility laid down in these Guidelines.
6. The President shall rule on the admissibility of supplementary questions and shall limit their number so that each Member who has put down a question may receive an answer to it.
The President shall not be obliged to declare a supplementary question admissible, even where it satisfies the foregoing conditions of admissibility, if:
a) it is likely to upset the normal conduct of Question Time, or
b) the main question to which it relates has already been adequately covered by other supplementary questions, or
c) it has no direct bearing on the main question.
Answers to questions
7. The institution concerned shall ensure that answers are concise and are relevant to the subject of the question.
8. If the content of the questions concerned permits it, the President may decide, after consulting the questioners, that the institution concerned should answer them together.
9. A question may be answered only if the questioner is present or has notified the President in writing, before Question Time begins, of the name of a substitute.
10. If neither the questioner nor a substitute is present, the question shall lapse.
11. If a Member tables a question, but neither that Member nor a substitute are present at Question Time, the President shall remind the Member in writing of his or her responsibility to be present or substituted. If the President has to send such a letter three times in the space of any twelve-month period, the Member concerned shall lose the right to table questions at Question Time for a six-month period.
12. Questions that remain unanswered for lack of time shall be answered in accordance with Rule 110(4), first subparagraph, unless the authors thereof request application of Rule 110(3).
13. The procedure for answers in writing shall be governed by Rule 110(3) and (5).
Time limits
14. Questions shall be tabled at least one week before Question Time begins. Questions not tabled within this time limit may be taken during Question Time with the consent of the institution concerned.
Questions declared admissible shall be distributed to Members and forwarded to the institutions concerned.
Format
15. Question Time with the Commission may, with the agreement of the Commission, be divided into specific question times with individual Members of the Commission.
Question Time with the Council may, with the agreement of the Council, be divided into question times with the Presidency, the High Representative for common foreign and security policy or the President of the Eurogroup. It may also be divided by subject.
***
Recommendations
The European Parliament has adopted a resolution with recommendations Concerning Question Time. These form Part B of Annex II:
B.Recommendations
(extract from resolution of Parliament of 13 November 1986)
The European Parliament,
1. Recommends stricter application of the guidelines for the conduct of Question Time under Rule 43 [now Rule 109], and in particular of point 1 of those guidelines concerning admissibility;
2. Recommends more frequent use of the power conferred on the President of the European Parliament by Rule 43(3) [now Rule 109(3)] to group questions for Question Time according to subject; considers, however, that only the questions falling within the first half of the list of questions tabled for a given part-session should be subject to such grouping;
3. Recommends, as regards supplementary questions, that as a general rule the President should allow one supplementary question from the questioner and one or at most two supplementaries put by Members belonging preferably to a different political group and/or Member State from the author of the main question; recalls that supplementary questions must be concise and interrogatory in form and suggests that their duration should not exceed 30 seconds;
4. Invites the Commission and the Council, pursuant to point 7 of the guidelines, to ensure that answers are concise and relevant to the subject of the question.
***
Watch the EP live
The next Question Time with the Commission is scheduled for Tuseday 10 March 2009 between 18:00 and 19:30. “Séance en direct” allows you to follow the live proceedings of the European Parliament.
The final draft agenda for the sittings from 9 to 12 March 2009 offer a snapshot view of the issues to be debated and the work of the European Parliament:
http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sce/data/fast_access/doc//879/03_mars_I_EN.pdf
Perhaps even Sir Humphrey should miss out on one of his Club dinners for a taste of Euro sausage. Yes, Minister?
Ralf Grahn
Today we let Jim Hacker guide us on our courageous visit to the Euro sausage factory, where the Question Time brand is made.
For the less hyperbolically inclined: the rules on Question Time in the European Parliament.
***
Treaty provisions
Currently the third paragraph of Article 197 of the Treaty establishing the European Community (TEC) concerns oral and written questions to the Commission.
The text 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:
Article 197 TEC
-----
The Commission shall reply orally or in writing to questions put to it by the European Parliament or by its Members.
-----
***
Original Lisbon Treaty (ToL)
Article 2, point 185 of the original Treaty of Lisbon did not affect Article 197 TEC with regard to questions by the European Parliament or its members to the Commission (OJEU 17.12.2007 C 306/102).
***
Consolidated Lisbon Treaty
Article 197 (ToL) was renumbered Article 230 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) in the consolidated Lisbon Treaty, with the questions to the Commission in the second paragraph (OJEU 9.5.2008/151):
Article 230 TFEU
(ex Article 197, second, third and fourth paragraph, TEC)
-----
The Commission shall reply orally or in writing to questions put to it by the European Parliament or by its Members.
-----
***
EP Rules of Procedure
The existing and future treaty level provisions leave the practical solutions to be sought at a lower level. On the one hand, the Commission has an obligation to reply to parliamentary questions, but as usual the institutions have to find cooperative solutions to make things work. On the other hand, questions in parliament are something the European Parliament has had to develop internally.
Not mentioned directly at treaty level is the fairly high profile event called Question Time, laid down in Rule 109 of the Rules of Procedure of the European Parliament (16th edition, October 2008). Note the powers of the EP President to rule on the admissibility and the order of questions:
Rule 109 Question Time
1. Question Time with the Council and Commission shall be held at each part-session at such times as may be decided by Parliament on a proposal from the Conference of Presidents. A specific period of time may be set aside for questions to the President and individual Members of the Commission.
2. No Member may put more than one question to the Council and the Commission at a given part-session.
3. Questions shall be submitted in writing to the President, who shall rule on their admissibility and on the order in which they are to be taken. The questioner shall be notified immediately of this decision.
4. The detailed procedure shall be governed by guidelines laid down in an annex to these Rules of Procedure.
***
Guidelines
The detailed procedure is laid down in Annex II, with the guidelines in part A. These guidelines serve MEPs drafting questions and the President of the EP ruling on admissibility and order:
ANNEX II Conduct of Question Time under Rule 109
A.Guidelines
1. Questions shall be admissible only where they
- are concise and are drafted so as to permit a brief answer to be given;
- fall within the competence and sphere of responsibility of the Commission and the Council and are of general interest;
- do not require extensive prior study or research by the institution concerned;
- are clearly worded and relate to a specific matter;
- do not contain assertions or opinions;
- do not relate to strictly personal matters;
- are not aimed at procuring documents or statistical information;
- are interrogatory in form.
2. A question shall be inadmissible if the agenda already provides for the subject to be discussed with the participation of the institution concerned.
3. A question shall be inadmissible if an identical or similar question has been put down and answered during the preceding three months unless there are new developments or the author is seeking further information. In the first case a copy of the question and the answer shall be given to the author.
Supplementary questions
4. Each Member may follow up the reply with a supplementary question to any question and may put in all two supplementary questions.
5. Supplementary questions shall be subject to the rules of admissibility laid down in these Guidelines.
6. The President shall rule on the admissibility of supplementary questions and shall limit their number so that each Member who has put down a question may receive an answer to it.
The President shall not be obliged to declare a supplementary question admissible, even where it satisfies the foregoing conditions of admissibility, if:
a) it is likely to upset the normal conduct of Question Time, or
b) the main question to which it relates has already been adequately covered by other supplementary questions, or
c) it has no direct bearing on the main question.
Answers to questions
7. The institution concerned shall ensure that answers are concise and are relevant to the subject of the question.
8. If the content of the questions concerned permits it, the President may decide, after consulting the questioners, that the institution concerned should answer them together.
9. A question may be answered only if the questioner is present or has notified the President in writing, before Question Time begins, of the name of a substitute.
10. If neither the questioner nor a substitute is present, the question shall lapse.
11. If a Member tables a question, but neither that Member nor a substitute are present at Question Time, the President shall remind the Member in writing of his or her responsibility to be present or substituted. If the President has to send such a letter three times in the space of any twelve-month period, the Member concerned shall lose the right to table questions at Question Time for a six-month period.
12. Questions that remain unanswered for lack of time shall be answered in accordance with Rule 110(4), first subparagraph, unless the authors thereof request application of Rule 110(3).
13. The procedure for answers in writing shall be governed by Rule 110(3) and (5).
Time limits
14. Questions shall be tabled at least one week before Question Time begins. Questions not tabled within this time limit may be taken during Question Time with the consent of the institution concerned.
Questions declared admissible shall be distributed to Members and forwarded to the institutions concerned.
Format
15. Question Time with the Commission may, with the agreement of the Commission, be divided into specific question times with individual Members of the Commission.
Question Time with the Council may, with the agreement of the Council, be divided into question times with the Presidency, the High Representative for common foreign and security policy or the President of the Eurogroup. It may also be divided by subject.
***
Recommendations
The European Parliament has adopted a resolution with recommendations Concerning Question Time. These form Part B of Annex II:
B.Recommendations
(extract from resolution of Parliament of 13 November 1986)
The European Parliament,
1. Recommends stricter application of the guidelines for the conduct of Question Time under Rule 43 [now Rule 109], and in particular of point 1 of those guidelines concerning admissibility;
2. Recommends more frequent use of the power conferred on the President of the European Parliament by Rule 43(3) [now Rule 109(3)] to group questions for Question Time according to subject; considers, however, that only the questions falling within the first half of the list of questions tabled for a given part-session should be subject to such grouping;
3. Recommends, as regards supplementary questions, that as a general rule the President should allow one supplementary question from the questioner and one or at most two supplementaries put by Members belonging preferably to a different political group and/or Member State from the author of the main question; recalls that supplementary questions must be concise and interrogatory in form and suggests that their duration should not exceed 30 seconds;
4. Invites the Commission and the Council, pursuant to point 7 of the guidelines, to ensure that answers are concise and relevant to the subject of the question.
***
Watch the EP live
The next Question Time with the Commission is scheduled for Tuseday 10 March 2009 between 18:00 and 19:30. “Séance en direct” allows you to follow the live proceedings of the European Parliament.
The final draft agenda for the sittings from 9 to 12 March 2009 offer a snapshot view of the issues to be debated and the work of the European Parliament:
http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sce/data/fast_access/doc//879/03_mars_I_EN.pdf
Perhaps even Sir Humphrey should miss out on one of his Club dinners for a taste of Euro sausage. Yes, Minister?
Ralf Grahn
Friday, 6 March 2009
European Parliament: Questions for oral answer
Parliamentary questions give elective representatives opportunities to profile themselves and issues outside the legislative treadmill.
UK Prime Minister’s Question Time has probably set the trend in Europe, including the European Parliament, to find ways of more direct interaction between parliaments and governments.
The structure of the European Union is more complicated, but in this blog post we look at the rules concerning oral questions by the EP or MEPs to the Commission.
***
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 third paragraph of Article 197 TEC concerns oral and written questions to the Commission.
The text 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:
Article 197 TEC
-----
The Commission shall reply orally or in writing to questions put to it by the European Parliament or by its Members.
-----
***
Original Lisbon Treaty (ToL)
Article 2, point 185 of the original Treaty of Lisbon did not affect Article 197 TEC with regard to questions by the European Parliament or its members to the Commission (OJEU 17.12.2007 C 306/102).
***
Consolidated Lisbon Treaty
Article 197 (ToL) was renumbered Article 230 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) in the consolidated Lisbon Treaty, with the questions to the Commission in the second paragraph (OJEU 9.5.2008/151):
Article 230 TFEU
(ex Article 197, second, third and fourth paragraph, TEC)
-----
The Commission shall reply orally or in writing to questions put to it by the European Parliament or by its Members.
-----
***
Admissibility of questions
Among the powers of the President of the European Parliament is to rule on the admissibility of questions to the Council and the Commission, according to Rule 19(2) of the Rules of Procedure of the European Parliament (16th edition, October 2008).
***
Questions for oral answer
Attentive readers may have noticed my deliberately sloppy language above, calling the questions oral and written.
As we see from Rule 108 the questions are submitted to the EP President in writing. Hence ‘Questions for oral answer with debate’.
Submission is reserved for committees, political groups or at least forty MEPs.
The Conference of Presidents decides if a question is placed on the agenda and in what order.
Questions have to be communicated to the Commission one week in advance.
The oral part of the proceedings commence at the sitting where the question is aired and answered (paragraph 4).
Rule 103(2) to (5) refers to winding up the debate with a resolution (paragraph 5).
Rule 108 Questions for oral answer with debate
1. Questions may be put to the Council or the Commission by a committee, a political group or at least forty Members with a request that they be placed on the agenda of Parliament.
Such questions shall be submitted in writing to the President who shall immediately refer them to the Conference of Presidents.
The Conference of Presidents shall decide whether and in what order questions should be placed on the agenda. Questions not placed on Parliament's agenda within three months of being submitted shall lapse.
2. Questions to the Commission must be referred to that institution at least one week before the sitting on whose agenda they are to appear and questions to the Council at least three weeks before that date.
3. Where the questions concern matters referred to in Articles 17 and 34 of the EU Treaty, the time limit provided for in paragraph 2 of this Rule shall not apply, and the Council must reply with sufficient promptness to keep Parliament properly informed.
4. One of the questioners may move the question for five minutes. One member of the institution concerned shall answer.
[Official explanation: The author of the question is entitled to use the whole period of speaking time mentioned.]
5. Rule 103(2) to (5) shall apply mutatis mutandis.
***
Eur-Lex
In principle, you can search on Eur-Lex for Parliamentary questions, but when I tested I got the improbable result that no such questions had been posed during the time span 2008 to 2009. A number of other search options yielded results of a similar nature.
But if you want to try your luck, go to:
http://eur-lex.europa.eu/RECH_questions_parlementaires.do
***
EP website
You may be luckier if you try the European Parliament’s web page Parliamentary questions:
http://www.europarl.europa.eu/QP-WEB/home.jsp?language=en
The so called oral questions are found here:
http://www.europarl.europa.eu/QP-WEB/application/home.do?SELECT_TAB=qo_param
For the year 2009 there were 46 oral questions listed under Rule 108:
http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sidesSearch/sipadeMapUrl.do?PROG=OQ&L=EN&SORT_ORDER=D&REF_OQ=O-2009-*&F_REF_OQ=O-*/2009
Ralf Grahn
UK Prime Minister’s Question Time has probably set the trend in Europe, including the European Parliament, to find ways of more direct interaction between parliaments and governments.
The structure of the European Union is more complicated, but in this blog post we look at the rules concerning oral questions by the EP or MEPs to the Commission.
***
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 third paragraph of Article 197 TEC concerns oral and written questions to the Commission.
The text 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:
Article 197 TEC
-----
The Commission shall reply orally or in writing to questions put to it by the European Parliament or by its Members.
-----
***
Original Lisbon Treaty (ToL)
Article 2, point 185 of the original Treaty of Lisbon did not affect Article 197 TEC with regard to questions by the European Parliament or its members to the Commission (OJEU 17.12.2007 C 306/102).
***
Consolidated Lisbon Treaty
Article 197 (ToL) was renumbered Article 230 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) in the consolidated Lisbon Treaty, with the questions to the Commission in the second paragraph (OJEU 9.5.2008/151):
Article 230 TFEU
(ex Article 197, second, third and fourth paragraph, TEC)
-----
The Commission shall reply orally or in writing to questions put to it by the European Parliament or by its Members.
-----
***
Admissibility of questions
Among the powers of the President of the European Parliament is to rule on the admissibility of questions to the Council and the Commission, according to Rule 19(2) of the Rules of Procedure of the European Parliament (16th edition, October 2008).
***
Questions for oral answer
Attentive readers may have noticed my deliberately sloppy language above, calling the questions oral and written.
As we see from Rule 108 the questions are submitted to the EP President in writing. Hence ‘Questions for oral answer with debate’.
Submission is reserved for committees, political groups or at least forty MEPs.
The Conference of Presidents decides if a question is placed on the agenda and in what order.
Questions have to be communicated to the Commission one week in advance.
The oral part of the proceedings commence at the sitting where the question is aired and answered (paragraph 4).
Rule 103(2) to (5) refers to winding up the debate with a resolution (paragraph 5).
Rule 108 Questions for oral answer with debate
1. Questions may be put to the Council or the Commission by a committee, a political group or at least forty Members with a request that they be placed on the agenda of Parliament.
Such questions shall be submitted in writing to the President who shall immediately refer them to the Conference of Presidents.
The Conference of Presidents shall decide whether and in what order questions should be placed on the agenda. Questions not placed on Parliament's agenda within three months of being submitted shall lapse.
2. Questions to the Commission must be referred to that institution at least one week before the sitting on whose agenda they are to appear and questions to the Council at least three weeks before that date.
3. Where the questions concern matters referred to in Articles 17 and 34 of the EU Treaty, the time limit provided for in paragraph 2 of this Rule shall not apply, and the Council must reply with sufficient promptness to keep Parliament properly informed.
4. One of the questioners may move the question for five minutes. One member of the institution concerned shall answer.
[Official explanation: The author of the question is entitled to use the whole period of speaking time mentioned.]
5. Rule 103(2) to (5) shall apply mutatis mutandis.
***
Eur-Lex
In principle, you can search on Eur-Lex for Parliamentary questions, but when I tested I got the improbable result that no such questions had been posed during the time span 2008 to 2009. A number of other search options yielded results of a similar nature.
But if you want to try your luck, go to:
http://eur-lex.europa.eu/RECH_questions_parlementaires.do
***
EP website
You may be luckier if you try the European Parliament’s web page Parliamentary questions:
http://www.europarl.europa.eu/QP-WEB/home.jsp?language=en
The so called oral questions are found here:
http://www.europarl.europa.eu/QP-WEB/application/home.do?SELECT_TAB=qo_param
For the year 2009 there were 46 oral questions listed under Rule 108:
http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sidesSearch/sipadeMapUrl.do?PROG=OQ&L=EN&SORT_ORDER=D&REF_OQ=O-2009-*&F_REF_OQ=O-*/2009
Ralf Grahn
Tuesday, 3 March 2009
European Parliament: Hearing the Commission
According to the second paragraph of Article 197 of the Treaty establishing the European Community (TEC), Members of the Commission may attend all meetings and shall, at their request, be heard on behalf of the Commission.
Under the consolidated Treaty of Lisbon, the first paragraph of Article 230 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) would shorten this to: The Commission may attend all the meetings and shall, at its request, be heard.
In the Framework Agreement mentioned below, the Commission seeks to ensure that, as a general rule, Members of the Commission are present at plenary sittings for agenda items falling under their responsibility, whenever Parliament so requests.
***
Statements
According to the Rules of Procedure, the Commission (as the Council and the European Council) can ask the EP President for permission to make a statement:
Rule 103 Statements by the Commission, Council and European Council
1. Members of the Commission, Council and European Council may at any time ask the President for permission to make a statement. The President shall decide when the statement may be made and whether it is to be followed by a full debate or by thirty minutes of brief and concise questions from Members.
-----
Rule 104 provides for information from the Commission about its latest decisions:
Rule 104 Statements explaining Commission decisions
After consulting the Conference of Presidents, the President may invite the President of the Commission, the Commissioner responsible for relations with the European Parliament or, by agreement, another Commissioner, to make a statement to Parliament after each meeting of the Commission, explaining the main decisions taken. The statement shall be followed by a debate of at least thirty minutes in which Members may put brief and concise questions.
***
Relations more broadly
The provisions on hearing in the Chamber cover only a part of the multi-faceted relations between the European Parliament and the Commission.
Therefore we take a broader view of the relations between these institutions and look at how some of them have been regulated in the Rules of Procedure of the European Parliament (16th edition, October 2008).
***
Interinstitutional agreements
The “institutional triangle” ─ the European Parliament, the Commission and the Council ─ have developed complementary rules through so called interinstitutional agreements.
The EP’s Rules of Procedure offer the following general principles concerning these agreements:
CHAPTER 6 INTERINSTITUTIONAL AGREEMENTS
Rule 120 Interinstitutional agreements
1. Parliament may enter into agreements with other institutions in the context of the application of the Treaties or in order to improve or clarify procedures.
Such agreements may take the form of joint declarations, exchanges of letters or codes of conduct or other appropriate instruments. They shall be signed by the President after examination by the committee responsible for constitutional affairs and after approval by Parliament. They may be annexed to the Rules of Procedure for information.
2. Where such agreements imply the modification of existing procedural rights or obligations or establish new procedural rights or obligations for Members or bodies of Parliament, or otherwise imply modification or interpretation of the Rules of Procedure, the matter shall be referred to the committee responsible for examination in accordance with Rule 201(2) to (6) before the agreement is signed.
***
Framework Agreement
There are several interinstitutional agreements, but Annex XIII to the EP Rules of Procedure contains the Framework Agreement on relations between the European Parliament and the Commission, which aims to ensure that their powers and prerogatives are exercised as effectively as possible.
Here is a summary of matters covered.
The rules concern the political accountability of the Commission, information at every stage of legislative and budgetary processes, as well as on the Commission’s legislative and work programme. The Commission undertakes to inform the EP about action taken on the basis of requests by the European Parliament.
The Commission promises information about negotiations on international agreements from the preparatory stage onwards.
The Commission presents proposals for the European Union’s multiannual programming, with a view to achieving consensus on inter-institutional programming between the Institutions concerned.
As a general rule, the Member of the Commission responsible for an item under consideration in a parliamentary committee shall be present at the relevant committee meeting, when invited. Members of the Commission shall be heard at their request.
Annex 1 of Annex XIII concerns the forwarding of confidential information to the European Parliament and Annex 2 presents a timetable for the Commission legislative and work programme.
Ralf Grahn
Under the consolidated Treaty of Lisbon, the first paragraph of Article 230 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) would shorten this to: The Commission may attend all the meetings and shall, at its request, be heard.
In the Framework Agreement mentioned below, the Commission seeks to ensure that, as a general rule, Members of the Commission are present at plenary sittings for agenda items falling under their responsibility, whenever Parliament so requests.
***
Statements
According to the Rules of Procedure, the Commission (as the Council and the European Council) can ask the EP President for permission to make a statement:
Rule 103 Statements by the Commission, Council and European Council
1. Members of the Commission, Council and European Council may at any time ask the President for permission to make a statement. The President shall decide when the statement may be made and whether it is to be followed by a full debate or by thirty minutes of brief and concise questions from Members.
-----
Rule 104 provides for information from the Commission about its latest decisions:
Rule 104 Statements explaining Commission decisions
After consulting the Conference of Presidents, the President may invite the President of the Commission, the Commissioner responsible for relations with the European Parliament or, by agreement, another Commissioner, to make a statement to Parliament after each meeting of the Commission, explaining the main decisions taken. The statement shall be followed by a debate of at least thirty minutes in which Members may put brief and concise questions.
***
Relations more broadly
The provisions on hearing in the Chamber cover only a part of the multi-faceted relations between the European Parliament and the Commission.
Therefore we take a broader view of the relations between these institutions and look at how some of them have been regulated in the Rules of Procedure of the European Parliament (16th edition, October 2008).
***
Interinstitutional agreements
The “institutional triangle” ─ the European Parliament, the Commission and the Council ─ have developed complementary rules through so called interinstitutional agreements.
The EP’s Rules of Procedure offer the following general principles concerning these agreements:
CHAPTER 6 INTERINSTITUTIONAL AGREEMENTS
Rule 120 Interinstitutional agreements
1. Parliament may enter into agreements with other institutions in the context of the application of the Treaties or in order to improve or clarify procedures.
Such agreements may take the form of joint declarations, exchanges of letters or codes of conduct or other appropriate instruments. They shall be signed by the President after examination by the committee responsible for constitutional affairs and after approval by Parliament. They may be annexed to the Rules of Procedure for information.
2. Where such agreements imply the modification of existing procedural rights or obligations or establish new procedural rights or obligations for Members or bodies of Parliament, or otherwise imply modification or interpretation of the Rules of Procedure, the matter shall be referred to the committee responsible for examination in accordance with Rule 201(2) to (6) before the agreement is signed.
***
Framework Agreement
There are several interinstitutional agreements, but Annex XIII to the EP Rules of Procedure contains the Framework Agreement on relations between the European Parliament and the Commission, which aims to ensure that their powers and prerogatives are exercised as effectively as possible.
Here is a summary of matters covered.
The rules concern the political accountability of the Commission, information at every stage of legislative and budgetary processes, as well as on the Commission’s legislative and work programme. The Commission undertakes to inform the EP about action taken on the basis of requests by the European Parliament.
The Commission promises information about negotiations on international agreements from the preparatory stage onwards.
The Commission presents proposals for the European Union’s multiannual programming, with a view to achieving consensus on inter-institutional programming between the Institutions concerned.
As a general rule, the Member of the Commission responsible for an item under consideration in a parliamentary committee shall be present at the relevant committee meeting, when invited. Members of the Commission shall be heard at their request.
Annex 1 of Annex XIII concerns the forwarding of confidential information to the European Parliament and Annex 2 presents a timetable for the Commission legislative and work programme.
Ralf Grahn
European Parliament: Relations with Commission and Council
The existing treaties and the EU Treaty of Lisbon contain basic provisions on the internal organisation of the European Parliament and on the EP’s relations with the other institutions: the Commission and the Council.
We note that the Council (Presidencies) have been negligent in reporting on the preparatory work to implement the Treaty of Lisbon.
In this blog post we present the treaty changes before we embark upon the relations between the institutions in more detail.
***
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:
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 amended two of the three other paragraphs (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.’.
***
I used the words formally deleted with regard to the first paragraph of Article 197 TEC, because if we look at Article 9a(4) of the Treaty on European Union (TEU) we find the following text (OJEU page 17):
4. The European Parliament shall elect its President and its officers from among its members.’.
***
Consolidated Lisbon Treaty
This means that we had two strands to follow in the consolidated Treaty of Lisbon (OJEU 9.5.2008 C 115).
1) The main provisions on the institutions are located in Title III of the Treaty on European Union (TEU) and Article 9a TEU (ToL) was renumbered Article 14 TEU in the consolidated version (OJEU page 22 to 23).
In a number of blog posts we presented the internal organisation of the European Parliament, where it has exercised its autonomy by laying down detailed provisions in its Rules of Procedure. We found that the EP’s web pages showed little effort to offer the public accessible information about the activities and decisions of the administrative bodies of the Parliament.
2) We are now going to turn to the “institutional triangle”, the relations between the European Parliament, the Commission and the Council.
.
***
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 page 151):
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.
***
Lisbon Treaty changes
The first paragraph of Article 230 TFEU does not change the meaning of its counterpart in Article 197 TEC, but it is shorter and arguably more elegant.
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.
The Council has been negligent in its reporting on the preparation of the numerous Lisbon Treaty implementing measures and in enabling a public debate on the draft proposals.
Ralf Grahn
We note that the Council (Presidencies) have been negligent in reporting on the preparatory work to implement the Treaty of Lisbon.
In this blog post we present the treaty changes before we embark upon the relations between the institutions in more detail.
***
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:
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 amended two of the three other paragraphs (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.’.
***
I used the words formally deleted with regard to the first paragraph of Article 197 TEC, because if we look at Article 9a(4) of the Treaty on European Union (TEU) we find the following text (OJEU page 17):
4. The European Parliament shall elect its President and its officers from among its members.’.
***
Consolidated Lisbon Treaty
This means that we had two strands to follow in the consolidated Treaty of Lisbon (OJEU 9.5.2008 C 115).
1) The main provisions on the institutions are located in Title III of the Treaty on European Union (TEU) and Article 9a TEU (ToL) was renumbered Article 14 TEU in the consolidated version (OJEU page 22 to 23).
In a number of blog posts we presented the internal organisation of the European Parliament, where it has exercised its autonomy by laying down detailed provisions in its Rules of Procedure. We found that the EP’s web pages showed little effort to offer the public accessible information about the activities and decisions of the administrative bodies of the Parliament.
2) We are now going to turn to the “institutional triangle”, the relations between the European Parliament, the Commission and the Council.
.
***
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 page 151):
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.
***
Lisbon Treaty changes
The first paragraph of Article 230 TFEU does not change the meaning of its counterpart in Article 197 TEC, but it is shorter and arguably more elegant.
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.
The Council has been negligent in its reporting on the preparation of the numerous Lisbon Treaty implementing measures and in enabling a public debate on the draft proposals.
Ralf Grahn
Saturday, 21 February 2009
European Parliament: Internal organisation and relations between the institutions
Both the existing treaties and the EU Treaty of Lisbon contain basic provisions on the internal organisation of the European Parliament and on the EP’s relations with the other institutions: the Commission and the Council.
In this blog post we present the treaty changes, but ahead of the European elections in June 2009 we will then continue by taking a closer look at the detailed provisions in a number of posts.
***
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:
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 amended two of the three other paragraphs (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.’.
***
I used the words formally deleted with regard to the first paragraph of Article 197 TEC, because if we look at Article 9a(4) of the Treaty on European Union (TEU) we find the following text (OJEU page 17):
4. The European Parliament shall elect its President and its officers from among its members.’.
***
Consolidated Lisbon Treaty
This means that we have two strands to follow in the consolidated Treaty of Lisbon (OJEU 9.5.2008 C 115).
The main provisions on the institutions are located in Title III of the Treaty on European Union (TEU) and Article 9a TEU (ToL) has been renumbered Article 14 TEU in the consolidated version (OJEU page 22 to 23). The whole Article is presented here as background, although the fourth paragraph will be our point of departure:
Article 14 TEU
1. The European Parliament shall, jointly with the Council, exercise legislative and budgetary functions. It shall exercise functions of political control and consultation as laid down in the Treaties. It shall elect the President of the Commission.
2. The European Parliament shall be composed of representatives of the Union's citizens. They shall not exceed seven hundred and fifty in number, plus the President. Representation of citizens shall be degressively proportional, with a minimum threshold of six members per Member State. No Member State shall be allocated more than ninety-six seats.
The European Council shall adopt by unanimity, on the initiative of the European Parliament and with its consent, a decision establishing the composition of the European Parliament, respecting the principles referred to in the first subparagraph.
3. The members of the European Parliament shall be elected for a term of five years by direct universal suffrage in a free and secret ballot.
4. The European Parliament shall elect its President and its officers from among its members.
***
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 page 151):
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.
***
After this general presentation of the changes brought about by the Lisbon Treaty we are going to dedicate a few blog posts to the internal organisation of the European Parliament before we turn to the inter-institutional relations.
Ralf Grahn
In this blog post we present the treaty changes, but ahead of the European elections in June 2009 we will then continue by taking a closer look at the detailed provisions in a number of posts.
***
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:
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 amended two of the three other paragraphs (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.’.
***
I used the words formally deleted with regard to the first paragraph of Article 197 TEC, because if we look at Article 9a(4) of the Treaty on European Union (TEU) we find the following text (OJEU page 17):
4. The European Parliament shall elect its President and its officers from among its members.’.
***
Consolidated Lisbon Treaty
This means that we have two strands to follow in the consolidated Treaty of Lisbon (OJEU 9.5.2008 C 115).
The main provisions on the institutions are located in Title III of the Treaty on European Union (TEU) and Article 9a TEU (ToL) has been renumbered Article 14 TEU in the consolidated version (OJEU page 22 to 23). The whole Article is presented here as background, although the fourth paragraph will be our point of departure:
Article 14 TEU
1. The European Parliament shall, jointly with the Council, exercise legislative and budgetary functions. It shall exercise functions of political control and consultation as laid down in the Treaties. It shall elect the President of the Commission.
2. The European Parliament shall be composed of representatives of the Union's citizens. They shall not exceed seven hundred and fifty in number, plus the President. Representation of citizens shall be degressively proportional, with a minimum threshold of six members per Member State. No Member State shall be allocated more than ninety-six seats.
The European Council shall adopt by unanimity, on the initiative of the European Parliament and with its consent, a decision establishing the composition of the European Parliament, respecting the principles referred to in the first subparagraph.
3. The members of the European Parliament shall be elected for a term of five years by direct universal suffrage in a free and secret ballot.
4. The European Parliament shall elect its President and its officers from among its members.
***
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 page 151):
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.
***
After this general presentation of the changes brought about by the Lisbon Treaty we are going to dedicate a few blog posts to the internal organisation of the European Parliament before we turn to the inter-institutional relations.
Ralf Grahn
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