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Daily Notebook: 21-07-99(2)

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The New Commission


The New Commission

Wednesday 21 July - Commission President designate Romano Prodi came before the House to present his new team, which he described as of the highest quality and well balanced. Some 75% of those proposed were former Ministers, he said, from a wide variety of political parties and with a wealth of experience in diplomacy, business, economic policy making and the legal world. The proposed new team also contains the same number of women as in the outgoing Commission, although Mr Prodi admitted that he would have liked to have seen more.

Mr Prodi then told MEPs that at the first informal meeting last weekend a clear decision had been taken in which each Commissioner undertook to undertake his or her duties giving priority to the European interest. In addition, each proposed Commissioner had agreed to stand down if asked by the Commission President to do so in the light of any unacceptable circumstances. The new Commission would be commited to the highest standards of accountability and would respect a new code of conduct providing, as he put it, for very strict rules regarding a conflict of interest when Commissioners leave the service.

Turning to the reforms of the Commission, while not wanting to undermine the institution and indeed the contribution it had made to developing European integration, Mr Prodi emphasised that it was ill-equipped to deal with today's needs and indeed had not been modernised over the past 40 years in order for it to keep pace with current developments. He was under no illusions about the tasks ahead but did say a start would be made by streamlining the "Cabinet" structure so that each Commissioner's office would be composed of small multi-national units from at least three different countries. Each Commissioner would indeed also be housed in the same building as the civil servants responsible for his or her areas of responsibility. Rules regarding appointments at the highest level would be tightened up and there would be more internal mobility for existing staff, he added. Furthermore, the media department would be strengthened with a view to ensuring that the Commission's policies were given the widest possible airing in the most professional way so that all European citizens could understand what was happening. And that wasn't all. Other changes envisaged included a more detailed reform at the beginning of next year to be presented by the new Vice-President with this specific responsibility, after studying the report of the Committee of Experts set up by Parliament and due to be published in September. The new Commission, he emphasised would be an administration of the highest level and would lead by example. It would, he added, be based on transparency, accountability and efficiency. In drawing up the Commission's programme, he undertook to make it more relevant to the European public. He readily admitted that EU institutions were suffering from a loss of confidence by the citizens at large and in order to win this back it was necessary to make the EU relevant to people's needs and take account of concerns over jobs and sustainable development as well as social justice and quality of life.

Mr Prodi then singled out the question of a loss of public confidence in both European and national organisations responsible for guaranteeing the quality of Europe's foodstuffs. His answer here was to propose a new Food and Drug Safety organisation based on the US food and drug agency model. Other policy areas where he felt the EU had a specific contribution to make included air transport where congestion involving inter-European flights was on the increase and an area requiring a European solution and drug-taking in sport. While he acknowledged that some commentators might not consider this a priority, he did feel it was an important concern for people in general. In addition, he emphasised that in some regards it was necessary to have more intervention at a European level to win back the confidence of the citizens. Here he singled out Kosovo as an example. He was however concerned that the resources available to rebuild the shattered community and establish a stable peace in the region would not be sufficient. Nevertheless, the EU should emphasise reconciliation and make sure its presence was visible in an area in which other international organisations such as the UN also had a decisive role to play. The priority for EU financial assistance must be to go towards helping people on the ground and rebuilding homes.

As to the forthcoming IGC on institutional reforms, he pointed out that he did not take the view that this was just a simple post-Amsterdam tidying up operation but was vital in ensuring a stable institutional organisation able to take account of a potential doubling of the number of member states.

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The debate


The debate

Opening the debate, EPP/ED Leader Hans-Gert Poettering (D) emphasised that the legitimacy of this new Commission would only be endorsed by the Parliamentary hearings due at the end of August. And taking issue with Mr Prodi's contention that it was a "well balanced" Commission, Mr Poettering, to applause from his group, said he did not believe a political balance had been achieved and in particular he singled out the appointment of the proposed two German Commissioners. While he accepted Mr Prodi's assurances over the responsibilities of each Commissioner, he wondered whether each one would be asked to stand down if he or she did not receive the endorsement of a majority in the Parliamentary committee carrying out the hearings for each individual Commissioner. PES Leader Enrique Barón Crespo (E) however, disputed this interpretation and took the view that it was not the political affiliation of the Commissioners that was at stake but rather their competence and ability to act. The function of the hearings should be to test this. He recognised however that the duty of the EU was now to respond to the poor turnout and lack of concern of European citizens in European affairs as shown in the recent European elections and he too felt this could only be overcome by the EU showing itself to be relevant to key issues such as unemployment and Kosovo. The approach of his group, he said, would be based on ensuring that reforms brought about more democracy and efficiency in the EU institutions rather than holding the Commission to ransom. What was at stake, he said, was providing something better for the European citizen.

Pat Cox (Munster, ELDR) argued that if necessary the publication of the report of the Wise Men should be speeded up, but that Parliament's hearings of the Commission should not be delayed. He considered the current situation, with the old Commission still in place, to be "deeply embarrassing". This had been exacerbated by the "deplorable choices" recently made by Mr Bangemann. It was important to know the perspectives that each of the candidate Commissioners would bring and the suitability of their portfolios. They should realise, he argued, that they were accountable to Europe and the Parliamentary hearings should be tough. He would continue to press for reform of the Treaties with Parliament no longer a junior partner in the process but an equal among equals.

For the Greens/EFA, Paul Lannoye (B) stressed in particular that environmental concerns should not be neglected in the new WTO round and that the precautionary principle should be applied. Fausto Bertinotti (I, EUL/NGL) drew attention to the issue of the 20 million unemployed in Europe. This was affecting social cohesion, he argued. Paulo Portas (P, UEN) said that he was still in the dark about where Mr Prodi stood politically. He went on to highlight the problems of Portuguese farmers. Emma Bonino (I, TGI) was one of many speakers to underline the real challenges faced by the new Commission but also asked for them to show more respect and generosity for old colleagues. Michael Holmes (South West, EDD) spoke of his concerns about the future of European democracy and stressed that the Commission needed to become a servant of the elected representatives of Europe. The EU should not be ruled by "nominated bureaucrats". He believed that Mr Prodi should have put himself up for re-election by the new Parliament as he had been approved by the previous Parliament and less than 50% of its members had returned. Surveys showed, he said, that the UK electorate was probably the most Euro-sceptic in the EU. This, he believed, would continue to be the case until there was true democracy.

Winding up, Mr Prodi welcomed the fact that all members had recognised the need for the institutions to cooperate together. One gauge of their success would be the voter turnout at the next EU elections. He noted that the donkey had been the electoral symbol of his party in Italy. This animal, he said, was obstinate by nature and he too was obstinate. He recalled the words of Leonardo da Vinci who said that the donkey was a strange animal which preferred to die of thirst rather than drink dirty water. It was a symbol of what he intended to do. This reference later drew a response from Klaus Hänsch that the donkey should not water down its wine. He stressed that the new Commission had been put together in a very open way and that the result was a balanced one. He wanted the Parliamentary hearings to be in-depth and not an occasion for settling accounts from the past. All prospective Commissioners had given him their word of honour that they would resign if something new and untoward emerged. The political responsibility for the future lay with Parliament and the Commission. On international trade, he wanted there to be a balance between free trade and health, the safety of food and medicines was very important. Mr Prodi concluded with the words "forwards if possible" but reminded MEPs that it lay in their hands.

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The Finnish Presidency


The Finnish Presidency

Wednesday 21 July - Finland's Minister for Foreign Affairs Tarja Halonen came before the House to outline the priorities for the Finnish Presidency of Council over the next six months. As she put it, following the appointment of a new Commission commited to transparency and efficiency, it was an ideal opportunity to introduce reforms throughout the EU and indeed she emphasised Finland's commitments to opening up Council's affairs to the public. In addition, she was concerned to see Council develop a single policy and speak with a single voice.

As far as Kosovo was concerned, the priority now was to restore stability to the Balkans and a start would be made by removing sanctions which affected the Serbian people. The crisis also showed the need for the EU to improve planning arrangements for such eventualities and procedures for managing crises.

Turning to the question of enlargement, it was, she emphasised, important for the EU to remain credible in the negotiations and not just make empty promises while she acknowledged there was a problem in dealing with Turkey's application. As a first step, relations with Turkey would be improved if the death sentence on Mr Öcalan was not carried out. Finland's other priority was to improve relations on Europe's Northern frontiers and especially with Russia.

Switching to Swedish, the Foreign Minister then emphasised the importance of Information society setting future standards and creating new job possibilities. Finland is particularly commited to the single market in this area and in particular opening up a telecommunications sector. Another priority for the Finnish Presidency to be taken up at the Tampere Council meeting was the question of Immigration, Asylum and Refugees. It was also important to improve cooperation in tackling cross- border crime while on a social level, the Minister emphasised the need for regulations to be in place to allow people to move freely across the EU and enjoy social security benefits. Other points taken up in the speech was the need to tackle pollution, creat jobs and for the EU to fulfil ist social obligations. She singled out mental health in the context of an ageing society as a particular priority.

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The debate


The debate

Opening the debate, Marjo Matikainen-Kallström (Fin, EPP) underlined the need for improvements to the EU's institutional structure, with due respect for subsidiarity. At the same time, the Kosovo crisis had shown the need for the EU to put in place structures to enable an effective non-military response to be mounted. Otherwise, her priorities were to improve administration and take account of the "northern dimension" to EU policy making, particularly in the area of regional security. For the PES, Riitta Myller (Fin) concentrated on emphasising the importance of openness and access to documents. Progress had been made in this area and there was now an opportunity to push ahead with more transparency, she said. It was important to set a timetable for enlargement. For the Liberals, Astrid Thors (Fin) pointed out that in many ways recent success at an EU level had been achieved by individuals rather than by institutions and it was necessary to correct this balance. Dealing with refugees following the Kosovo crisis was of the upmost importance and she added that it was also important to take up the question of discrimination in Slovakia. Heidi Hautala (Fin, Greens/EFA) emphasised the importance of the Common Foreign and Security Policy and crisis management not based on military approach. She too was looking for improved transparency and for the long awaited energy tax to be introduced.

Gerard Collins (Irl, UEN) spoke of the benefits of the euro but stressed the need for a consumer information campaign and he believed that the Finnish Presidency should continue to address consumer concerns. He also considered that the 9% unemployment rate in the EU was "unacceptably high" and called for economic growth.

Olivier Dupuis (I, TGI) welcomed the Finnish governemnt's statement on the abolition of the death penalty but drew attention to the 3,000 Kosovans who had been taken prisoner by the Serb authorities and called for a necessary action to be taken against the "criminal" Milosevic. Jens-Peter Bonde (Dk, EDD) was unhappy as he felt there was no true democratic decision-making. Adriana Polibortone (I, Ind) underlined the importance of the EU having a clear role in the peace process in Kosovo. Both material reconstruction and a reconstruction of people's faith in each other were necessary, she said.

It was then the turn of Commissioner Franz Fischler to give the House details of Commission activity to promote reconstruction in Kosovo. A total of .378m were commited to the region, the bulk going towards providing essential foods and medicines. Of this total .100m were earmarked for Albania, .62m for the FYROM and .30m for Montenegro. .45m were going to the Obnova programme of which the priorities were such areas as mine clearance and rebuilding the interiors of houses. Mr Fischler noted that a special agency was being set up to manage this aid. However, there had been much debate as to whether the agency should be located in Pristina or in Salonika in Greece. Just this week, Council had decided that the agency's seat should be in Salonika. However, Mr Fischer wanted the new Commission to decide on the location. He noted that 20 EU officials were already at work in Pristina. In the subsequent debate, Bertel Harder (Dk, ELDR) was one speaker to argue that the work should be done from Pristina. The Commissioner then noted that on 13 July, a high level steering group had been established involving the Commission and the World Bank to examine the process of managing the aid. On 28 July the first donor conference would meet in Brussels to set the priorities and a further conference would take place in October. Many speakers such as Arie Oostlander (Nl, EPP/ED) subsequently stressed the importance of building the foundations of democracy in Kosovo as well as economic reconciliation.

On the question of the Öcalan trial, Mr Fischler expressed his confidence that Turkey would not carry out the death penalty. He believed that the case against Mr Öcalan could be transferred to a civilian court. Subsequent speakers such as Ozan Ceyhun (D, Greens/EFA) condemned the "collective failure" of the EU over the Öcalan case.

John Purvis (Scotland, EPP/ED) pointed out that the main priority for Kosovo was now to enable the province to stand on its own feet. This however, would be no easy task, given its dependence on Serbia and indeed its routes through Serbia to other trading countries. He wanted to know what Council's strategy would be if Milosevic remained.

Turning to the question of a members' statute, Willi Rothley (D, PES) urged the Finnish Presidency to take up negotiations with MEPs at the highest level with a view to reaching an agreement on the basis of the text approved by Parliament in May. As he put it, members would not be pushed by the "Swedish, British or Dutch press" into agreeing an unacceptable text. John Bowis (London, EPP/ED) welcomed the Finnish governemnt's commitment to tackling the problem of mental illness, which he pointed out would affect some one in three of the population at some time in their lifetime and indeed accounted for more than 10% of global health expenditure. Malcolm Harbour (West Midlands, EPP/ED) on the other hand, welcomed Finland's commitments to developing the information society. New developments here, he said, would bring about a single market far more rapidly than any amount of legislation. It was vital to ensure that consumers would be able to benefit from this. And, he added, it would help to create jobs by enabling entrepeneurs to obtain access to world markets.

Replying to the debate, Tarja Halonen pointed out that freedom of opinion and freedom of the press was one precondition for a sign of return to democracy in Serbia that she was looking for. And, she added, while Finland was not itself a member of NATO, it fully respected the motives of those member states who did take part in the military peace-keeping operations. She also emphasised her commitment to tackling the problem of minorities, drawing attention to the situation of the Romany people.

Close 8.15pm

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PE.275.838

 
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