The proposal was amended as follows:

Text proposed by the Commission(1) Amendments by Parliament (Amendment 1) Recital 9    (9) Whereas it is appropriate to make certain improvements in the programmes of operations in respect of duration and country coverage;    (9) Whereas it is appropriate to make certain improvements in the programmes of operations in respect of duration and country coverage and with regard to transparency, accountability and conformity with the Community's objectives and policies ; (Amendment 2) Recital 10    (10) Whereas the Council is calling on the Bank to continue its operations in support of investment projects carried out in those countries by offering it the guarantee provided for in this Decision;    (10) Whereas the European Parliament and the Council are calling on the Bank to continue its operations in support of investment projects carried out in those countries by offering it the guarantee provided for in this Decision; (Amendment 3) Recital 14a (new)    (14a) Whereas EIB lending operations should be in conformity with the Community's objectives as laid down in the treaties and with the policy objectives defined by the European Parliament and the Council; whereas the provisions of Article 6 of the EC Treaty are of particular importance to the EIB in the implementation of its mandate; (Amendment 4) Recital 14b (new)    (14b) Whereas there is an increasing need for the European Parliament and the Council to be able to evaluate the effectiveness of EIB operations and the extent to which they contribute to the fulfilment of the objectives referred to above; whereas, to this end, the EIB should establish, in agreement with the Commission, annual operational objectives and appropriate measurements for assessing whether those objectives have been fulfilled; whereas there should be regular consultation between the Commission and the EIB to ensure coordination of priorities and activities in third countries concerned by this Decision and to measure progress towards the fulfilment of these objectives; . (Amendment 5) Recital 14c (new)    (14c) Whereas EIB operations need to be conducted in a more transparent manner, with greater openness and accountability both on the ground within the third countries concerned by this Decision and in relations with the European Parliament; whereas the EIB should be subject to legislation on public access to documents to be adopted by the European Parliament and the Council on the basis of Article 255 of the Treaty; whereas the Anti-Fraud Office, arrangements for which are established by Regulation (EC) No 1073/1999 of 25 May 1999 1 , and the Court of Auditors should have the necessary access to the EIB for the fulfilment of their tasks; ___________________ 1 OJ L 136, 31.5.1999, p. 1. (Amendment 6) Article 1(1), 4th subparagraph At the end of this period, the guarantee shall be automatically extended to cover an additional overall ceiling of € 9 475 million with the same regional distribution until 31 December 2006 unless the Council decides otherwise on a proposal from the Commission before the beginning of the second lending period on 31 July 2003. The Commission shall report to the European Parliament and Council on the application of this Decision at the latest on 31 January 2003, or six months before any accession treaties enter into force, and make a proposal for amendment if appropriate. On the basis of this proposal the Council, acting unanimously, and the European Parliament shall review the operation of the current Community guarantee and shall decide on the conditions for extending the guarantee for the remaining lending period until 31 January 2007. This review shall in particular examine the level of the guarantee referred to in the preceding subparagraph and the rate of coverage by means of non-sovereign guarantees referred to in paragraph 3. (Amendment 7) Article 1(3)    3. The European Investment Bank is invited to aim to cover the commercial risk on 30% of its lending under this Decision from non-sovereign guarantees to be expanded upon whenever possible insofar as the market permits on an individual regional mandate basis.    3. The European Investment Bank shall aim to cover the commercial risk on 30% of its lending under this Decision from non-sovereign guarantees to be expanded upon whenever possible insofar as the market permits on an individual regional mandate basis. In addition to this overall target, the Bank shall establish, in consultation with the Commission, a target rate for each regional mandate which takes into account the level of development of local capital markets in the region concerned, its capacity for attracting commercial investment and its comparative level of economic and social development (Amendment 8) Article 1a (new) Article 1a In implementing this Decision, the European Investment Bank shall ensure that its lending operations contribute to the fulfilment of the Community's objectives as laid down in the treaties and of the policy objectives defined by the European Parliament and the Council. (Amendment 9) Article 2 The Commission shall inform the European Parliament and the Council each year of the loan operations and progress made on risk-sharing under Article 1(3) and shall, at the same time, submit an assessment of the operation of the scheme and of coordination between the financial institutions in that area. To that end , the Bank shall transmit to the Commission the appropriate information.    1. The Commission shall inform the European Parliament and the Council each year of the loan operations and progress made on risk-sharing under Article 1(3) and shall, at the same time, submit an assessment of the operation of the scheme and of coordination between the financial institutions in that area. The information submitted by the Commission to the European Parliament and the Council shall include an assessment of the contribution of the lending under this Decision to the fulfilment of the Community's policy objectives, taking into account the operational objectives and appropriate measurements of their fulfilment to be established by the European Investment Bank, in agreement with the Commission. For these purposes , the Bank shall transmit to the Commission all appropriate information in good time. This information shall be made available to the European Parliament and the Council.    2. Every year, and at an appropriate moment in the budgetary procedure, the European Investment Bank shall be given the opportunity to discuss with the European Parliament and the Council its operational objectives and performance indicators for the forthcoming year and its performance and the effectiveness of its lending during the previous year. (Amendment 10) Article 2(3) (new)    3. In its annual report to the European Parliament and the Council, the Commission shall also assess alternatives to lending operations through the EIB, such as interest rate subsidies. (Amendment 11) Article 3 The Bank and the Commission shall fix the terms on which the guarantee is to be given. The Bank and the Commission shall fix the terms on which the guarantee is to be given, after duly informing the European Parliament and the Council. Through regular consultation, the Bank and the Commission shall ensure the coordination of priorities and activities in third countries concerned by this Decision and measure progress towards the fulfilment of the Bank's objectives . In respect of requests for transfers of appropriations from the guarantee reserve in order to provision the Guarantee Fund, the Commission shall ensure that the budgetary authority is in possession of all the information it requires in order to reach a decision on the transfer request, including information on the loans which have given rise to the request and on the overall level of calls made on the Guarantee Fund or expected to be made in that budgetary year. The information shall include an assessment by the Commission of the macroeconomic situation of the third countries benefiting from loans which have given rise to the request and the risks to which the Guarantee Fund is exposed as a consequence. The Parliament and the Council shall make appropriate arrangements to deal with information of a confidential nature. (Amendment 12) Article 4a (new)    . Article 4a This Decision is addressed to the Commission and to the European Investment Bank.

(1) OJ C145, 26.5.1999, p.10.

(Consultation procedure)

The European Parliament,

-  having regard to the Commission proposal to the Council (COM(1999) 142 (1) ),

-  having been consulted by the Council pursuant to Article 235 of the EC Treaty (C5-0039/99 ),

-  having regard to Rule 67 of its Rules of Procedure,

-  having regard to the report of the Committee on Budgets and the opinion of the Committee on Industry, External Trade, Research and Energy (A5-0051/99 ),

1.  Approves the Commission proposal as amended;

2.  Calls on the Commission to alter its proposal accordingly, pursuant to Article 250(2) of the EC Treaty

3.  If the Council intends to depart from the text approved by Parliament, calls on the Council to notify Parliament;

4.  Asks to be consulted again if the Council intends to amend the Commission proposal substantially;

5.  Instructs its President to forward its position to the Council and Commission.

(1) OJ C 145, 26.5.1999, p.10.